


Inside a Constellation

by Biekewieke



Category: Star Wars Sequel Trilogy
Genre: Enemies to Lovers, F/M, Graphic depictions of violence - Freeform, Smut, Sparks Fly, Urban Legends, Wild Space
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2018-09-18
Updated: 2018-09-18
Packaged: 2019-07-14 01:44:27
Rating: Explicit
Warnings: Graphic Depictions Of Violence
Chapters: 14
Words: 27,359
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/16030418
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Biekewieke/pseuds/Biekewieke
Summary: Imagine this...What if there’s an urban legend about an ancient world, mentioned in the sacred Jedi texts, located somewhere in the uncharted regions?A sacred place called Orion’s Belt, the source of the Force itself hidden in its folds, a place that is rumored to be the origin of the very first Jedi?What if Rey is looking for that place, to tap into the power of the Force or to look for answers?What if Kylo follows her, hellbent on either convincing her to join him or to destroy her?What would happen when these two forces of nature collide once more?Will they persevere in their own justifications or will they find the answers they were always looking for?





	1. Chapter 1

**Author's Note:**

> My submission for this anthology fest was inspired by a constellation that means a lot to me on a very personal level.   
> Orion, the Hunter. Or, even more specifically, Orion's belt.   
> Those three stars in a row have been important to me throughout my life and became even more meaningful after my mother's passing. They were her favorite stars too.   
> So, when I had to choose my heavenly body, I didn't have to think twice.   
> It took some tries, quite some ups and downs, but I hope I managed to pull off a story that's unusual and out-of-the-box when you consider the prompt. And most of all, I hope you enjoy! 
> 
> And last but not least:  
> Here's to all the mods who took the time to pay detail to our work, to teach and enlighten and who share our love for the written word. 
> 
> And very specifically, to Viv and Briar.  
> I wasn't always the easiest author to deal with, but I appreciate the effort you took to guide me on this wild ride :)  
> Thank you.

**Darkness...**

 

Four months had passed since the Battle of Crait.

The First Order continued to expand, reaching further and further into the Unknown Regions and tightening their grip on the systems that were already under their control. Kylo Ren stepped up to the role of Supreme Leader with fervor.

In the meantime, what remained of the Resistance was struggling.

No one had come to their aid on Crait, but not long after they had mounted their escape, they had been contacted by several allies. Excuses were offered, but none of them were strong enough to withstand the sharp tongue of General Organa. The allies were now doing all they could to regain her favor.

The Resistance had managed to land on Kalee, a small planet in the Aegin System, to refuel and come up with an alternative plan. They had then decided on Silmea as a location for a new base and to think about a new strategy.

Leia had been elected Admiral, since she had been the only one with enough experience to take on the title. She had agreed with reluctance, but grace. Poe Dameron had been promoted to General, and Finn had become a Commander, both very eager to prove themselves worthy of such a position.

And Rey….

Rey had been promoted to “Hope of the Resistance.”

A highly esteemed position, for sure. But not one she executed with passion.The responsibility that came with the title weighed her down. Her time with Luke had not been enough to teach her what she needed to know. Not even close. She was no Jedi. She wasn’t even enough to be considered a Padawan.

Ben had been right all along.

She was nothing. Some days she could bear it easily. Other days, like today, it was a lot harder.

She had confined herself to her chambers on the Falcon, claiming that the quarters they had provided her with on the Base felt too constrictive to her. Even though that made no sense, nobody questioned her claim.

She used her time on the Base for training her lightsaber techniques, and her time on the Falcon to study the ancient Jedi Texts. But it felt like a waste of time.

None of it made much sense to her. She was painfully aware that she needed a teacher if she wanted to decipher those ancient words of wisdom, that she needed someone who could translate them into something she would be able to understand.

Her heart dropped every time she was painfully reminded of the fact that the only one left with enough knowledge to be her teacher was also the one man who wanted to destroy her most of all. And she was still bound to him by the Force, unbelievable as it was.

She had to find a way to cut him off from her thoughts permanently, preventing him from manifesting despite the tugging she felt on that invisible cord that bound them. With every passing day, the pull became harder, more violent.

There were times she could swear she heard his voice shouting her name, fury and red-hot rage resonating through that link. A sense of desperation clawed at her chest as the sound vibrated through her very soul. And it took all the strength she could muster just to keep herself closed off from that connection they shared.

But she dreamed of him. Often.

And they were nothing like the memories of the Battle of Crait. They did not represent the monster that had resurfaced after she had refused his offer to rule with him, that had forced her teacher to sacrifice himself for the greater good, for the survival of the Resistance.

No. These dreams were quite different. They were gentle, his eyes were always soft, his demeanor always achingly tender and almost loving. His words, whenever he spoke, were kind and peaceful.

They inflicted the worst kind of torture to her already torn heart and made the crux of her situation even more unbearable. Because, despite every piece of undeniable proof, she still felt hope for Ben Solo.

_ Stupid! _

It was stupid to think that. But there was nothing she could do to fight it. The combination of the Force Bond still alive and kicking, her ever-growing frustration with her inability to be what she needed to be and to grasp the knowledge she desperately craved, and her own traitorous dreams were taking their toll.

She was struggling. Clambering desperately. Failing.

She was tired.

Falling asleep on her cot on the Falcon, one of the Jedi Books open on her lap, she valiantly fought to keep her mind free from the memory of a tall, dark-haired man with soulful dark eyes and a voice that made her heart hammer in her chest.


	2. Orion meets Taurus: The Determined one.

Dawn was still nothing more but a pale glow along the horizon, but Rey was up and about. She was getting dressed and preparing for the day although she wasn’t ready for it, when a strange yet familiar sensation rocked her to her core.

_ The Bond. _

It trembled and convulsed as a fierce roar sounded in her mind.

_ “Rey!  _ “

She tried in vain to block him, to put her walls up as fast as she could. It didn’t work and she felt him, his presence as close to her as if he were standing in the same room.

To her surprise, a sense of relief flooded her briefly. She quickly recognized it wasn’t her own.

A sensation skimmed across her skin, as if he had reached out and touched her, gentle sparks igniting her nerve endings like glow sticks. It was gone as quickly as it came, and it was replaced with a deep feeling of irritation, anger and disappointment.

Just as she was about to turn around and tell him to go away, the moment seemed to bleed out. His aura was gone, their Bond silenced. Surprise filled her as she noticed her own disappointment at the loss of contact.

_ I must be losing my mind…  _

_ S _ he quietly thought about those confusing reactions as she resumed preparations for the day and left the Falcon to head for the base.

After quickly eating breakfast in silence, she was summoned to Leia’s office on her comm-link. Finn and Rose were already there, waiting for her with a cup of caf cradled in their hands. Rey poured herself a cup too, and sat down as Poe and Leia appeared.

“Good morning, sunshines.” Poe’s sarcastic drawl made Rey smile and Finn frown. “Sleep well?” he asked cheerfully and got grumbling in return from Finn.

“Of course! Ready for the day, Sir!” Rose sounded awfully chipper. Too chipper for this ungodly hour.

Rey just sipped her caf quietly and stared up at him from across the rim. His eyes narrowed ever so slightly, almost imperceptibly so.

“Okay, so…” he started with a sigh. “We’ve got a mission planned out for you three. Something to keep you occupied and keep you out of trouble…” The big smirk on Poe’s face was obviously teasing. “We want you guys to go scout the area.”

“We want to find out more about the terrain surrounding our base.” Leia spoke up softly, weary to the bone. Her health had been declining gradually. The med-bots stated that it had to do with her exposure to the space vacuum when the First Order had fired on the Raddus, that it was simply an aftermath they had to deal with.

“We know this land is rugged and that some parts of the forest seem impenetrable, but we need to know more about it. We can’t risk another disaster with being trapped, like we were on Crait.”

They all shared a look, remembering that sliver of absolute desperation at thinking there was no way out of that cave.

“So you three are going to go down to the main hangar and pick up the supplies we’ve already prepared for you. You will go out for the day, choosing one direction, and be back by sunset. You’ll try to discover as many facts about the surroundings in that area as you can. Map every tree, rock and cave you can find and report back tonight. We will repeat this for several days until we have a perimeter covered. After that, we’ll figure out whether or not we need to repeat it for more than one day. Is the mission clear?”

Leia looked around and, despite the pallor of her skin, she was every bit the intimidating Leader of the Resistance she had always been.

“Yes, Gen… I mean, Admiral,” Finn blurted out.

“Any questions?” Poe asked.

“What happens if we get stuck somewhere? Do we set up camp? Or…?” Rose asked practically.

“You’ll get a comm-link, of course,” Poe interjected rationally, “and if things go bad or the link goes down, we’ll send out a search party as soon as we can.” .

“When do we leave?” Finn’s deep voice sounded gravelly. He wasn’t really a morning type of person.

Rey just sat there quietly.

“As soon as you’re ready. We want to get this section mapped out asap.”

Leia was watching her closely.  “Is that alright with you, Rey?” she said softly, jarring the young woman from what appeared to be a daydream.

“Of course,” Rey murmured, sitting up a little straighter. She knew she had to get a grip. But she wasn’t getting much sleep and when she did, her dreams were so vivid she woke up more exhausted than she was to begin with. “As long as I get to finish my caf…” she said with a wink and took a sip.

They all shared a laugh and after another round of details, they called the meeting adjourned.

After that, things picked up speed. Rose, Finn, and Rey went down to the hangar and picked up their supplies, got another quick briefing, and then headed out. A flip of a coin had decided they were going to start exploring the area to the west. They took their gear, strapped it in place and started walking.

The strange planet they were on was beautiful. Brightly colored flowers and plants grew everywhere in this dense forest. The atmosphere was hot and humid, but oddly enough still pleasant. It did not impede breathing, as some other humid planets tended to do.

The foliage was a strange purple color, instead of the green Rey loved so much. The sky was bright blue. There were several gray clouds overhead, and the promise of rain hung in the air.

They trudged along methodically. Rose and Finn kept talking incessantly as they wrote down things that stood out regarding their surroundings, while Rey was more preoccupied with things that had nothing to do with their assignment.

_ “Rey… _ “

There it was again, that tiny pull, that whisper in the back of her head. That ghostlike touch she normally only felt whenever she was asleep or well on her way to.

She was letting her guard down .

_ That won’t do,  _ she thought to herself as she answered despite her own determination to ignore him.

_ “Go away. Leave me alone.” _

She severed the link between them as suddenly as it had opened, but not before another wisp of regret slithered through.

This was getting out of hand. She needed to sleep. She needed to rest. Without  _ him _ in her head.

“Isn’t that right, Rey?”

She looked up and saw that Rose and Finn had kept on walking and she had apparently stopped moving. They had gotten quite a head start on her and were surprised to see her lag behind as far as she did.

“I’m sorry, what?” Rey asked sheepishly.

Rose frowned at her but said nothing. Finn, on the other hand, wasn’t as polite.

“Rey, what is going on with you lately?” He blurted out bluntly.

Rey raised her eyebrows and Rose elbowed him in the ribs.

“Hey!” he exclaimed angrily at Rose, and then continued in the same tone. “Don’t you elbow me, Rose! You’ve been thinking about it too, I know you have.” He redirected his attention to Rey again and pointed his finger at her while he took a few big steps in her direction.

“You have been acting strange for days. You don’t pay attention, you don’t train the way you used to, you can’t seem to focus, you seem to daydream in the middle important meetings. You’re always preoccupied. And you hide in the Falcon like some sort of hermit!”

Rey’s mouth fell open at the accusation, but Finn seemed to be on a roll.

“What is going on, Rey?” He looked at her imploringly. “We’re your friends. We care about you.” He heaved a deep sigh and gazed into her eyes with an honesty that made the back of her eyes sting with tears she refused to shed. “We worry...”

To have people care… it was still such a foreign concept.

“I just…” she said with a sigh. “I haven’t been sleeping well. A lot has happened in the past few months, and I seem to be adjusting slower than I normally do.” She smiled at him, but it didn’t quite reach her eyes. “It might take a little longer, but I’ll be fine. But thank you for worrying.”

She glanced over at Rose, who was staring at the pair of them with a strange gleam in her eye.

“Both of you.” Rey continued and locked her gaze with the other woman’s. “I’m lucky to have you both as my friends.” She smiled and this time it did reach her eyes. She watched as the tiny woman in front of her smiled back and put her hands on her waist with more sass than she could ever pull off.

“Well, if we’re done with this little heart-to-heart, we’re burning daylight. So, we might as well keep going. We’ll find a place where we can rest for a while, have our rations, and then get back to scouting.”

“I swear, Rose,” Finn started slowly, “I honestly don’t understand why you haven’t been promoted to General yet. You sure know how to boss people around…”

The little technician just flipped the hair off her forehead in a nonchalant way and said dryly: “It’s a gift.”

Rey and Finn laughed, and Rose chimed in for good measure.

They started their trek again, slowly but sure making their way through ever roughening terrain. They halted when they came to a strange clearing. There was no real explanation for it. But it was just that. A clearing.

Several logs were on the ground, partially overgrown with reddish and copper toned mosses. They seemed to be placed in a semi-circle, but no records or data had been found on the planet, and therefore they had no idea if it was inhabited or not. But everything about this area seemed to indicate that it had been at one point in time. A large rock formation formed a wall on one side, its surface overgrown with a beautiful array of different flowerlike shrubs in the brightest colors.

“This looks like as good a place as any to stop and rest.” Finn spoke with a finality in his tone, which clearly meant ‘I’m hungry and tired and I want to sit my ass down for a while’ to the women.

They shared a look and snickered quietly as Finn lowered himself on one of the logs and immediately dove into his backpack to retrieve his rations and his canteen.

Rose followed him, but also took her datapad from the backpack. She bit into one of the ration bars, which were awful but still a lot tastier than what she had to survive on back on Jakku. But they never failed to make Rey shudder.

_ Beggars can’t be choosers _ .

She’d eaten worse things in her life. She should be grateful. But life on the Base had spoiled her.

She walked up to the stone wall, intent on getting a closer look of those exotic flowers. She was drawn in by the odd texture of the petals, when she noticed something behind it. She leaned her hand against the wall and let out a startled scream as she tumbled forward.

The wall was just an overgrown mesh of climbing flowers, and they had clumped together into dense foliage, obscuring what appeared to be the entrance to a cave.

Finn and Rose were on their feet in milliseconds, Finn sprinting to her side.

“Rey!” he shouted out as he appeared in her line of view, looming over her.

Rey looked up at him, his sweet face framed by purple leaves and splotches of bright blue sky.

“Are you okay?” he asked, worry lacing his tone.

Rose also appeared above her with a worried frown on her face.

“Yes, I’m fine,” she croaked. “Just a little winded.”

She pushed herself up on her lower arms, trying to get her bearings. She was lying on top of the flowers she had been studying, now crushed beneath her. Above and around her, the walls seemed to lead into what appeared to be a cave. It was dark and a damp scent came from it, and Rey heard something like a whisper.

It reminded her of that time on Ahch-To when she had heard the whispers from the Force Tree calling to her.  Remembering that day, she felt that same sense of confusion and curiosity course through her veins.

It had been the beginning of the continuation of her journey. When things had become even more complicated, but also clearer somehow. It had sharpened her focus. It had shown her something about herself that she hadn’t been willing to see before.

“Rey?” Rose’s voice called to her softly.

She looked up and the concern in the girl’s face made her realize she needed to get up and get going.

“Yes, sorry,” she said sheepishly as she got up and dusted off the seat of her pants.

“Are you sure you’re okay?” Finn asked softly, putting a hand on her upper arm, and she felt Rose’s displeasure through the Force.

“Don’t worry. I’m fine. I just wasn’t careful,” she said as she shrugged off his hand.

She knew how much Rose cared about Finn and how much Finn cared about Rose. But she also understood what their friendship must look like to anyone else. They were pretty close after all.

“Let’s go, brother,” she said as she playfully tousled his dense curls. She still smiled broadly whenever she thought about how he had embraced his new freedom away from the First Order. The first rebellious act he’d done when faced with this new power over himself was to let his hair grow. No more buzz-cut for him.

“Let’s explore this thing,” she said cheerfully. “It might serve as a good hiding place, if what I’m guessing is true.”

“Euhm, Rey, maybe that’s not such a good idea. We don’t know what’s inside that thing…” Rose interjected.

Rey was quick to reply. “Well, I’m going. Whether you join me or not!” She picked up her backpack and started towards the entrance of the cave. “I’ll see you when I get back.”

She heard a small groan of frustration and a heavy sigh behind her, but she ignored them as she walked into the mouth of the stone structure.

“Rey, wait up!”

“Yeah, wait for us.”

Finn and Rose’s voices bounced off the walls and she secretly smiled. This idea of friendship was quickly becoming something very cherished to her.

Before long, she felt their presence at her back, their footsteps echoing collectively in the silence. Together, they started down the entrance of the cave.


	3. Orion meets Gemini: The curious one.

Aided by their torches, they gingerly made their way across the rocky surface.

There was a path of sorts, as if many feet had walked that same trail many times before, but the years had washed away the memories of it.

“This is taking too long,” Rose said quietly. “We should have gotten somewhere by now. This doesn’t feel right,” she added just as they rounded a corner.

The cave opened up before them into a large clearing. The ceiling was high and the space inside was vast. There was an opening at the top that allowed a single wide shaft of bright sunlight to filter down and shine brightly on a huge rock. Several smaller rocks were placed around it in a circle. It made the entire cavern look like a sacred place, the rock resembling an altar of sorts.

“Wow…” Finn said in a low tone filled with reverence.

Rose’s sharp intake of breath seconded that. Rey was also taken aback by the atmosphere of piety.

She was completely enthralled by the aura of this place when it happened. Rey heard it again, that whisper. It seemed to sing to her in unintelligible words, murmuring something she could not hear but her heart could understand.

She looked around and noticed something on the far wall behind the huge rock. She walked up to it, while Finn and Rose looked around and jotted down notes and observations on their datapad. She shone her torch on the wall and noticed a pop of color.

Mesmerized, she stepped closer, her feet moving as if they had a will of their own.

As she got closer and closer, she could make out that the colors she had seen were in fact primitive drawings. It depicted several scenes that somehow seemed familiar.

Rose came to stand beside her. “Would you look at that?” she whispered in awe.

“Do you have any idea what that is?” Rey asked her.

“No, I don’t know the exact scene, but it’s got to be thousands of years old. Dating back to ancient times. I’ve only ever seen depictions like this in old files from the data-library from the Imperial era.” She lifted her hand and touched the wall with reverence. “This is beautiful,” she whispered.

“Yes, it is,” Rey answered, still mystified why this looked so familiar to her. She’d never seen anything like it in her life, and still…

“We should make recordings of these sketches and then return back to the base. No doubt someone will be able to tell us how this got there or what it is.”

Rey looked back at Finn, who seemed to be the epitome of practicality. So strange to have  _ him _ be in that position, but Rey didn’t say a word.

She nodded.

“That sounds like a good idea. We’ve probably scouted enough for one day. I’ve lost track of time since we entered the cave. I’ll get the Holovid-cam and you two make sure there’s enough light to be able to make the recordings bright enough.” Rose said briskly, being back to her usual bossy little self.

Rey smiled and caught Finn’s look of adoration as he stared at Rose taking the reins again.

_ I used to look at Ben like that…  _ she thought wistfully.

She shook the disturbing thought from her mind and got to work. The air inside this cave was messing with her head…

They soon got the recordings, not missing a single section or scene from the story portrayed on the wall. They packed up their gear afterwards and simply tracked their way out of the cave in silence. Each lost in their own thoughts, they simply marched on at a steady pace towards the Base. Finn and Rose started talking softly again somewhere along the way, but Rey kept quiet.

There was something about that scene. The whispers she had heard, that had led her to their discovery, the familiarity of that wall painting… Something was off.

They arrived back at the base just before sunset. They took the time to eat and freshen up before they went back to Poe and Leia to discuss their findings. When they were summoned, they gathered in the small space that served as a conference room along with most other members of the Resistance.

“As you can see on the report before you, we walked for about three and a half standard hours due west. We were walking through a dense forest, with remarkable vegetation. Several pictures have been taken, some of the plants or flowers are described in great detail so we may uncover their specifics at a later point in time. When we were about to sit down and eat, Rey stumbled upon the entrance to a cave that was hidden by overgrowth.” Rose spoke with confidence. 

Leia, Poe and several others were looking at them with different expressions on their faces, ranging from interest to boredom.

Rey continued in a similar animated tone. “When we decided to examine the cave closer, we stumbled upon a path worn into the rock floor. It hadn’t been walked upon in years, from the looks of the accumulated dust and dirt, but it was clearly a well-worn path at one point. We decided to follow it and see where it took us. After about twenty-five minutes, we rounded a corner and discovered a large open area inside the cave. It opened up into a large dome with a huge skylight at the top, where the light shone bright upon an altar of sorts, surrounded by several rocks that were placed around that altar as if they were seats. On the walls behind it we discovered a beautiful painted scene, if somewhat primitive.” Rey fell silent, still in awe and wondering what the paintings were about.

Rose waited for her to resume her explanation about their findings, but when Rey kept quiet, she continued softly. “We took pictures of everything and made recordings through the Holo-cam to show you,” she said, a sense of pride squaring her shoulders.

“After that, we sat down, ate the rest of our rations, and started the trek that would lead us back to the base. We will now try to explain more of the things we found and hopefully we can figure out what this is.”

Leia stood as Rose sat down and pushed the necessary buttons to bring up the pictures and recordings. They started discussing several possibilities and several explanations about the murals when a bark of laughter sounded loudly in their midst.

“You are all wrong,” a deep voice rumbled.

Silence descended upon them and everybody turned to watch Ca’al, one of Poe’s close friends, get up and walk towards the projector.

“This is not some silly depiction. This is a legend,” he said as he sat down on a bench in front of the projector table, muttering under his breath about old bones.

Everyone showed some form of surprise. Some jaws dropped. Some eyebrows shot up. Rey on the other hand did both, all ears for whatever Ca’al was about to say.

“This is something that has been told by my peoples for millenia,” he said in his heavy dialect. It was a miracle anyone understood a word he said.

“It is the Legend of Orion.”

“Orion?” Rey asked, the wonder sounding in her voice.

Ca’al gave her what seemed to be a very gentle and encouraging smile. “Yes. Orion. It actually makes sense that  _ you _ found this mural,” he continued softly, his voice as gentle and engaging as he could be. “For this is a legend that might even be linked to you personally.” He paused for dramatic effect and noticed with glee that the entire Resistance was hanging on his every word, Rey in particular.

“It is the Legend of the First Jedi.”

Several soft gasps could be heard, and some officers and fighters muttered under their breath.

“What do you know of this Legend, Ca’al? Would you please tell us?” Rey asked as she walked over to where he sat.

“Of course,” he said as he scooted over and patted the empty spot next to him for her to take. “It goes like this...” Once again he paused for dramatic effect, making Rey, Leia, and Poe smile.

“Long ago, before there was ever even a concept of Light and Dark, in the ancient worlds, there was a place. A planetary system, one of three stars in a row. One star was known as the planet of Light. The other was known as the planet of Darkness. And in between, there was the planet known as Balance. According to the tales of my people, this is where the Force found its origin. And my people claim that it was from this planet that the first Jedi originated. His name was Orion, also known as the Hunter.”

He looked around at everyone, as if to make sure he still had their attention. When it was clear that they were indeed all focused on his story, he nodded once and fixed his gaze on Rey’s face again.

“Orion was a warrior, an important member of his tribe. Yet everyone knew that he was restless. There was something pulling at him, always. One day, he gave in to his need to explore and set off for the Unknown Territory. Wild Space. His family and tribe were certain that he would not return from this journey.”

Ca’al looked up at the holos that were being projected above the table, the depiction of the murals vivid and bright. He got up and walked towards them, pointing to several scenes as he continued his story.

“He set out on his journey. He landed on several planets, some inhabited, others devoid of life. He became familiar with what the first humanoids considered the constellations, learned that they had an effect on the people who lived on planets nearby, how they seemed to shape their personalities. They believed the constellations - or signs as they called them- could predict their future. He went deeper and deeper into space taking that knowledge with him, not knowing where he was going but driven by an intense feeling of purpose. After several months, he arrived by chance at the three planets: Light, Dark, and Balance in the middle, a mixture of both. On the middle planet,” he said as he pointed right into the mural, “he discovered something truly special. Something he had never encountered before. It appeared to be a source, a well of some kind, that harnessed a power so great, it affected his very being. It was the Force, that holy energy that flowed through him and with him and around him, connecting his essence with all other beings. Life, death, violence, peace, light, dark… Everything was suddenly crystal clear.”

Ca’al turned back to Rey and stared at her, his beady eyes bright with excitement at being able to enlighten her about something.

“It is said by our people that upon his discovery, Orion became the first Master of the Force. Not a Jedi as we have come to know him, but a true Force-User, the very first of his kind. And perhaps the very last at the same time. As he stayed there, his entire being was illuminated by the Force, and he was bestowed with wisdom and power beyond the reaches of our imagination.”

He walked back over to where Rey was sitting, looking up at him with huge hazel eyes, twinkling with excitement, cheeks flushed.

“After he felt he had learned all he could, he returned to his people and tried to teach them the ways of the Force as he had learned them. He tried to instruct them. Some were more adept than others, and he soon started recognizing the characteristics of people who were more prone to be sensitive to the power of the Force. He lived a long life and eventually just disintegrated into the Force, as we know some Jedi have done. It is said that he became a constellation himself, so he could forever continue to learn from the stars and signs around him. If you look closely, on certain planets, you can still see him inside a constellation. A hunter aiming his bow with  the three planets are rumored to make up his belt.”

He touched Rey’s hand with his cold one and stared into her eyes warmly.

“No one has ever made the dangerous trip into Wild Space again, No one else has ever found the planet of Balance, that well of power rumored to reside within those planets now known as Orion’s Belt. The source of the Force is still a mystery until this very day, but the allure is still there. Perhaps it is not a stretch to want to believe that Orion chose you to find this mural. That the Force has reached out to you. Perhaps it recognizes your energy. Perhaps it wants  _ you _ to find the wellspring of the Force.”

Rey’s eyes were wide, her mouth forming a perfect O.

“Absolutely not!”

Everyone turned at the sound of Leia Organa’s stern voice.

“You are all crazy if you think I will even briefly consider letting Rey undertake such dangerous voyage.” Rey was about to object when Leia simply held up her hand. “Save it, Rey. I don’t even want to hear it.”

“I agree with Gen…. Uhm… Admiral Organa!” Poe was quick to jump on the wagon.

“And I absolutely second that!” Finn said, which made Rose roll her eyes at him. “You just got back and you’ve been through enough.”

Rey looked around at her friends, objecting so vehemently to something she hadn’t even considered herself. But then again, the more Ca’al’s words sunk in her brain, the more his idea made sense. She believed in the Force, that it guided her to do whatever she needed to do. It dictated her life and actions more than she could mention. Perhaps it wasn’t coincidence that she had been the one to discover the Mural…

“Rey, get that look off your face right now!” Finn said with a low growl in his voice.

She looked up at him. “What look?” she asked with a frown.

“ _ That _ look!” he countered. “The one where you’re actually thinking about this. The look that indicates that you’re curious and willing to take that risk.” He took a few steps in her direction. “Rey, this is crazy. It’s just a legend. We don’t even know if it’s true,” he whispered.

She looked up into his sweet face and saw nothing but concern and affection reflected in those dark eyes. She smiled benignly and sighed.

“Finn, there’s always truth to legends. We both know that. I got to meet one, remember?” she said with mischief twinkling in her eyes. “His sister is our guiding star. But don’t worry. I was just thinking about it.”

She touched his arm and saw relief come over him. As she glanced around at her other friends, she saw most of them shared his latest sentiment, except for Leia and Poe, who watched her skeptically, and Ca’al, who watched her with calculation. As if his people had known more about the legend than he let on. She decided to let it go for now.

They discussed several other things about their scouting trip, things they had discovered along the way. The briefing ended on a high note, and everyone returned to their chambers.

Some of the others went to the lounge area, where they would share a drink or two and talk about other things than Battle Tactics or Strategy. They would discuss music, or family or sports or games or basically anything not-related to day-to-day life on a Resistance Base.

Rey forfeited and returned to her own quarters on the Falcon to enjoy the solitude. Something made her uneasy. There was trouble brewing, she knew it.

As she walked up to the Millenium Falcon, that same strange awareness as before overtook her. There was a prickling sensation at the back of her neck, her nerve endings seemed to be overly sensitive and that tiny pull, that whisper was back.

_ “Rey?” _

_ Kylo Ren. _

No.

She would  _ not  _ let him ruin her hard won peace tonight. She brought up her walls as fast as she could, determined to keep him out.

Still… There was trouble brewing.


	4. Orion meets Aries: The Bold one

As she rumbled around the Falcon while she got ready for the night, she couldn’t shake the feeling that something was about to come up.

No sign of the First Order yet so far, but Rey knew they couldn’t be far off. There was that familiar churning feeling in her gut.

_ Kylo Ren. _

He was probably still looking for them. He'd doubled his efforts to track them in the past month, if not tripled. The threat of discovery was even greater than usual. Rey feared her link to him would cause the Resistance trouble.

He still reached out at least once a day. She continued to block him. He had gone down this path. Made his decision. Picked a Side. Chose the Dark.

She squeezed her eyes shut. It was no use thinking of Ben Solo.

_ He was gone. _

It still bothered her.

Because she still dreamt of him. The honesty she had seen in his eyes when he told her to let the past go. The desperation when he whispered ‘please’. The loneliness. The anger and disappointment when she had reached for the lightsaber. The pleading look in his gaze as he sat there, kneeling on the floor as she closed the door on him.

_ It won’t do! _

But that pull was still there. Persistent and demanding as ever. And she couldn’t risk connecting with him because of their location. If he found out where they were hiding through her …

She huffed and let out a small shout of anger. How had her life gotten so complicated?

She quickly changed into her sleep clothes and went through the motions of her evening routine. As she allowed herself to sink down on the cot and stared up at the ceiling, she was overwhelmed again. Ca’al’s story came to mind once more. The words he had spoken combined with the colorful mural and she couldn’t help but be intrigued.

Perhaps Ca’al was right.

Perhaps it was her destiny to find the source again. She was the last Jedi, after all. Perhaps it was her task in life to find the origins of the first Jedi? To discover that truth all over again? To implement it and teach it to others like her? To start anew?

She drifted off in a restless slumber, somewhere between true sleep and awareness.

She suddenly found herself standing inside a darkened cave. She heard whispers and voices and music, all hushed and muted, bright and soft hazy colors blending like prisms.

Temptation beckoned her to explore. As she took several steps, a bright light shone from deep inside something that seemed to be both a well and a waterfall. Peace enveloped her and she couldn’t help but want to touch it. But as she reached out, she felt a tremor in the Force. She would recognize it anywhere.

She whirled around and sure enough, there he was. Standing only a few feet from her, he looked just as he had when she had last seen him, with one difference.

He looked tired. Weary. Gaunt.

He stood there, his tall frame blocking the only access to the cave, effectively trapping her in place. He stared at her, a strange mixture of anger, relief, and awe visible in his angular face. His dark hair hung over his forehead, longer than she remembered.

She watched as he swallowed in silence, unsure of what this was.

“Rey?’

His voice was low, barely above a whisper. But the sound of her name on his lips, such hesitation in the single syllable, made her skin break out in goosebumps and sent a tiny shiver down her spine. She too swallowed.

“What are you doing here?” she blurted out.

She watched in fascination as that same expression from way back when flitted across his face again. The memory hit her full force.

_ Why is the Force connecting us? You and I? _

_ Murderous snake! You’re too late. You lost. I found Skywalker. _

The look on his face haunted her. The hurt and confusion regarding her reaction to him was just like when they had connected that second time. She saw each emotion transform into something else, until he finally settled on anger.

_ Surprise, surprise… _

“What am I doing? What are you doing here?” he retorted. He spat the words through clenched teeth, and she frowned.

“You’re in my dreams. I’m not in yours.”

He scoffed. “So you dream of me?” he muttered sardonically, an amused half smile toying with the corners of his mouth.

Her face fell. “Not if I can help it. I prefer not to think of you at all.”

That muscle underneath his left eye twitched, and a small flinch overtook those dark eyes.

“Then why, pray tell,” he hissed, “did you summon me in  _ your _ dream then?”

“I didn’t  _ summon  _ you,” she snapped. _ “ _ Must be the Force’s sense of humor.”  She was breathing hard, trying her best not to start hyperventilating.

Even though she was still angry, even though she would just as soon fight him again, she felt something inside her respond to him. An excitement, a relief, a happiness she couldn’t deny if she wanted to, coursed through her veins. And that was without thinking about the stupid hope that always seemed to pop up again after being with him….

He cocked his head and watched her silently for a few seconds. He was pensive. That was never good.

“You’re excited about something,” he murmured.

Her jaw dropped as she met his gaze with a sense of alarm coursing through her.

“What is it?” he said as he took a few steps closer.

“Don’t!” she all but shrieked.

His eyebrows lifted in surprise.

“Don’t come any closer!” she reprimanded him sternly.

He did something then she’d never really seen him do.

He smiled.

Just a little smile, tugging at the corners of his mouth.

_ Oh, Bloody Stars, but that man has luscious lips  _ she thought as he kept taking large steps towards her.

His steps faltered a little and the smile transformed as his mouth fell open slightly and his eyebrows shot up even higher than before.

_ Did he hear that?  _ she questioned herself silently.

And then he looked at her with the same look he had given her after the Throne Room Fight. Intense. Penetrating. Hungry…

It was making her feel as if she were a prey and he was a predator who hadn’t seen a meal in ages. And it made her heart stammer in her chest and her womb flutter.

“Rey…” His voice sounded more like a growl, emphasizing the feel of him being a predator.

She swallowed past the sudden lump in her throat, not knowing how to respond for the life of her.

“When are you going to realize that this is something we can’t run from?” He stopped a few inches from her, so close she could almost feel the heat from his body seep into her. “You and I… We’re linked. Bound by the Force.” He stared into her eyes and the way he looked at her made her insides tremble.

“Inseparable,” he whispered as he stared at her lips.

His lips opened of their own volition. They pursed slightly, and she knew it was a sign of his insecurity. He hated it, hated anything that would make him appear weak. But it was endearing to her. Even now, when they were on opposite sides again.

She was shocked to feel his desire to kiss her course through her, as if she were a reflection of him. And she was even more shocked to find that she wanted him to.

It was that exact sentiment that made her snap out of her stupor.

“That link should have been severed a long time ago,” she said fervently. She felt her anger rise at the memory of his behavior after the Throne Room disaster when he had attacked the few rebels that had survived, after trying to kill his mother and his uncle. Of his vow to destroy her.

“Whatever this is, so help me Maker, I will fight it with everything I have. Until you learn how to show remorse for what you did, you will always be the monster I thought you to be when we first met.”

He reared back as if she’d slapped him. His eyes hardened. He smirked, a soft snort of disdain sounding loud in the silence that encompassed them in this dreamlike scene. He leaned forward slightly and the muscles around his mouth and nose twitched.

“If it is a monster you want…” he whispered, “then it’s a monster you will get.” He ended in a snarl. “Wherever you go, whatever you do, I will always follow. I will  _ always  _ find you. I will always be close.” He spoke through clenched teeth.

“I am as much a part of you as you are of me. This Bond we share, this connection, was created for a reason. The Force itself forged it. And  _ so help me Maker,” _ he imitated her, “I swear that only our death will be able to end it.”

She swallowed hard at the intensity in his gaze. Something deep inside her trembled in response. It made her breathing grow ragged, as it had the last time she had called him a monster, back on Ahch-To. Why did he affect her like this? 

_ It must be the Bond _ .

Once more, his gaze dropped to her lips and his own breathing grew as ragged as her own. He took a step closer. Her chest heaved in anticipation. Her lips parted on their own volition, ready to tilt up and meet his, despite her will.

And just like that, he faded.

She found herself awaking rather brusquely.

She sat up and rested her head on her forearms, leaning on her knees. As she tried to regain control of her breathing, Rey couldn’t help but wonder why the Force had chosen to connect them now?

Why it had preyed on her, defenselessness in slumber? Why would it want her to keep in touch with someone who wanted nothing more but to be done with all of them?

The First Order was still hot on their tracks. No matter where they went, the First Order always managed to find them somehow. His words echoed in her mind.

_ “Wherever you go, whatever you do, I will always follow. I will always find you. I will always be close.” _

Was she the reason he kept finding them? As the realization dawned on her, her stomach twisted in knots.

He wasn’t after the Resistance.

He was after her…

Rey did something she hadn’t done in ages. She let out a little cry of dismay and despair. A few tears of absolute misery slipped down her cheeks. She never  _ ever _ allowed herself to succumb to her grief for long, and she wasn’t about to start now. With renewed resolve and determination, and free of her self-pity for a good long while, she rose.

It  _ was _ her he was after.

She changed into her regular attire quickly. She had barely rested, and the little sleep she’d managed to get was tainted by the strange dream. But despite that, she was filled with a sense of purpose that would be all the energy she needed.

She snuck out of her room carrying a duffel bag and went into the storage yard, where she took more than a fair amount of rations. She had no time to feel guilty about it. She stuffed them in the duffel bag and snuck out of the storage yard.

She ran back silently towards the Falcon.

Even if it was the biggest craft the Resistance had at this moment, she felt it was the only one that would be able to make the long trek. Besides, it was a vessel for adventure. Han had loved adventure. So, she felt as if she were entitled, as if she had his blessing. It wouldn’t be easy without a co-pilot, but she didn’t expect too much trouble.

And besides, if she was right and Ben was after  _ her _ and not the Resistance…

Then he would definitely know to track the Falcon.

Her departure would surely be noticed; the Falcon wasn’t exactly quiet, but everyone would be caught by surprise and would never be able to catch up with her.

She primed the engine, preparing it for take-off like she had hundreds of times before. The movements were so much a part of her routine now, she hardly had to think about it anymore.

Before long she was out of the hangar and ready to break the atmosphere. As soon as she did, she managed to set course in the general direction that Ca’al had pointed them in with his story.

When she was out of the planet’s orbit, she quickly jumped to hyperspace. It gave her a moment to breathe.

She got up from the pilot’s seat and wandered into the large sitting area. As she started to sink into one of the benches, she was suddenly startled by a series of shrill beeps. She whirled around and stared right into a familiar droid’s beady eyelet.

“Artoo! You scared the bejeebers out of me!” she said as she clutched her chest.

Closing her eyes and taking a deep breath to calm herself, she listened to the droids incessant beeping.

“Yes, I know that this was your home for a very long time. Of course you have the right to be here,” she replied softly.

More frantic beeping and some crude noises were emitted.

“Hey! That is  _ not _ fair! I did not steal the Falcon! Han gave me permission to use it, and you know it!” she said as she pointed her finger at the tiny blue and white astromech.

The droid let out a low whiny sound, one that made her feel the same sadness in her soul. Whoever claimed droids were just machines without souls had probably never met the Resistance droids. They had more personality than some humanoids she had known.

Another set of beeps, somewhat more tempered this time, were emitted and Rey found herself nodding in response.

“You’re right, Artoo. I shouldn’t have left without letting them know where I was going. But they would never have allowed it. In fact, Leia forbade me. But she wouldn’t understand…” Rey said sadly.

A small silence ensued. Rey didn’t know what to say, searching for the words to match her feelings.

“I just really believe this is something I need to do. It’s calling me. And I cannot help but respond. I know you probably won’t understand, but I have to do this.”

The droid beeped a little more.

“Guess we’re in this together then. Might as well make our time enjoyable,” she murmured.

She walked over to one of the cabinets and started making caf from the rations stored there. She then sat down at the table again and pulled out a few old maps. When she saw Han’s scribbling handwriting on the edges, she smiled sadly. How Rey wished she had had more time with him.

She still didn’t understand why Ben had taken his life. He’d never really answered her question when they’d had their Force Bond moment on Ahch-To. She blushed fiercely as she remembered his bare chest, glistening with sweat. Her stomach did a slow flip and she caught her breath.

Artoo beeped with the slightest hint of alarm, telling her he was worried because her temperature and heart rate had risen so suddenly.

“It’s nothing, Artoo,” she said quietly. “I was just thinking about something.”

He beeped a response that made her giggle and she turned her attention back to the map.

“From what Ca’al told us, Orion’s Belt should be here somewhere.” she said as she pointed to a region that was off the map. “In the Unknown Regions of Wild Space. I don’t know how long it will take us to get there, but I’m guessing we will need at least a dozen stops before we reach our destination. By my calculations, we should refuel in three standard days or less, depending on how often we jump to hyperspace.”

Artoo confirmed this and suggested they land on Comra, which was a very busy port. The First Order was present, but they would still be able to blend in if Rey tried to disguise herself a little. She lifted her eyebrow at him but said nothing.

They discussed possible stops for a few more moments and then a small beep indicated that the caf was ready. Rey got up, poured herself some caf and told Artoo she would return to the cockpit to double-check everything. Soon, they would exit hyperspace and she would have to decide what to do with the rest of her time.

It was gonna be a long flight…

\---

Ben was restless.

After the shared Force dream or whatever that thing was, he felt the constant urge to tug their Bond. He felt the need to find her, the need to see her again running through him like the blood coursing in his veins.

There was nothing he could do about it.

She had been on his mind constantly since the Throne Room Fight against the Praetorian guards. Since she had refused his offer to rule with him and since she destroyed the Legacy Lightsaber. He didn’t want to admit it, but he feared it was turning into an obsession.

_ Who am I kidding? I am obsessed with her… _

And now that he’d been able to see her again, to talk to her…

Chagrin filled Ben’s chest as he forced himself to face the fact that he not only wanted her at his side. He  _ needed _ her by his side. Without her, he felt unbalanced.

She belonged with him; he had seen it in his vision when they had touched hands. And he would do whatever he could to make her realize that, to bring her back to him.

He paced the floor of the New Supremacy’s Throne Room. After Crait, his first objective had been to build a new ship, to let his reign be obvious to the entire Galaxy. So, he had built a grand ship to rival the Supremacy.

It was impressive. And the victory of sitting on its throne was hollow.

He walked up to the grand floor-to-ceiling windows, gazing out into the inky darkness of open space.

She was out there.

And the dream was not a dream. It was a vision. He was sure of it! He couldn’t help but relive some of it as he closed his eyes.

That tinkling sound that had drawn him in first re-entered his mind. He heard the whispers again and again, muttered words that were incomprehensible, but he could feel they were important.

He remembered the glow of that strange waterfall-well. Of how it made Rey shine and shimmer, how it made her beauty even more apparent. His body responded to the woman in the vision again. It made him even more restless.

Mentally, Ben shifted through every story Luke had ever told him about waterfalls or wells. Nothing came up.

Still, it was important. The waterfall-well was what had led her to call on him. He was sure there was something about it that intrigued Rey. As he opened his eyes again, his mind was made up.

He pressed his comm-link and instantly a voice sounded. “How may I serve you, Supreme Leader?”

“I need information on a specific subject. Have someone search for references to a well or waterfall as a source of power in the Imperial Archives.”

“Yes, Supreme Leader. Right away, Sir!”

Ben turned back to the throne and sat down. He closed his eyes, took a deep breath and started meditating. Something he hated, but he felt this was a necessity. It would link him to her easier.

He would find out what Rey was up to. And he would find her.

_ So help me, Maker… _ _ _


	5. Orion meets Pisces: The Mysterious one.

Rey decided to make her first stop on Esfandia. A small planet, just on the edges of Wild Space and the Outer Rim, it was bound to be of no interest to the First Order.

From the information she had gathered on Han’s old map and the holonet, there wasn’t much of a trade route there. Fuel and food weren’t very much a priority yet, but sleep was becoming a bit of an issue. She needed to land long enough to be able to rest for a few hours, to catch her breath and come to terms with the fact that she had abandoned everyone and everything she cared about in lieu of an urban legend that might not even be true…

As she landed on that tiny, barren planet, she was reminded of Jakku. Not in terms of the desert climate, but more of the lonely and almost forsaken feel of the place. She touched ground near a small crop of tree-like vegetation and activated the shields, just in case.

She told Artoo to go into low-power mode since she was about to do the same. The good droid didn’t hesitate and did as she suggested.

She padded over to her room. Completely shattered, she didn’t even bother to take off her clothes. She just sat down on the edge of the big bed and took off her boots. Allowing them to fall where they would, she crawled over and let herself sink away in the comforter. As soon as her head hit the pillow, she slipped away in sweet blissful sleep.

Of course, it was not blissful for long.

Soon, a tall, dark, and handsome man haunted her dreams.

In this particular dream, he lay next to her on the bed. Almost as if she wasn’t dreaming at all. She was curled up against his bare chest with her hand on his heart, her face hidden in the crook of his neck. But something was wrong.

It felt too  _ real _ .

She could feel the heat of his skin. She could feel those curls tickle her nose.

_ Were those his fingers trailing down her spine? _

She opened her eyes and sure enough, there he was! Rey’s mouth fell agape, and she quickly lifted herself up on an arm. His eyes were closed, his breathing even and deep.

_Was he asleep?_ _Were they dreaming of sleeping together?_

Rey looked down at him. His beautiful face, with those dark eyes and luscious lips, tempted her to count the beauty marks. She felt the urge to run her finger across the scar that ran down his cheek to his chest, to bury her fingers in that thick, glossy hair. That was something she had always wanted to do, ever since she had been strapped to that interrogation chair and he took off his mask for her. Those dark curls had seemed so soft; it was almost a shame to conceal them in that stupid helmet.

Completely dumbfounded by her own wayward thoughts, his name escaped her lips on a choked sigh. “Ben?”

The sound must have been louder than she thought, because he murmured unintelligibly in response. Rey frowned and tried again, a little harder this time. She also gave his shoulder a little nudge for good measure.

“Ben!”

“What?” he muttered on a sleepy sigh, inhaling deeply as he tightened his embrace around her waist and nuzzled her neck affectionately.

She was too stunned to react for a moment. The sensations that coursed through her at such an intimate gesture made her breath catch in her throat. Her heart hammered against her chest after it had stopped beating altogether for a second or two. A heavy feeling settled deep inside her belly and she felt a strange warm sensation take hold between her legs. To make matters worse, Ben seemed to purr against her skin, causing goosebumps and tingles down her spine.

Rey’s confusion quickly turned into determination, and with more force than necessary, she gave this big lug of a man a shove against his shoulder as she yelled out his name.

“Ben! Wake up!”

“What?”

He awoke with a start and seemed to be as disorientated as she had been a moment ago. His wide eyes settled on her, and she watched with surprise how he didn’t seem at all fazed to find her in his arms. But as he seemed to rouse from his deep slumber, confusion settled in.

He looked at her and Rey felt a strange feeling course through her. A realization of sorts, that he obviously dreamt of her in his bed often, because this didn’t seem strange to him at all. Not until he was awake fully. Suspicion then crept in his dark gaze like a shadow.

“Rey?” he all but growled. “What’s going on?” The suspicion in his voice grew steadily. He looked around and Rey felt her breath hitch when his eyes locked with hers again. “The Falcon?” he ground out. “You’re on the Falcon?”

Her jaw dropped. “Can you see my surroundings?” she whispered. A mixture of awe and terror sounded in her voice and it made him look at her more closely.

“So it would seem…” His voice drifted off.

His hand was still resting on her hip. Her hand still rested on his shoulder from where she’d shaken him. She was leaning over him partially, her hair framing her face. Her big, hazel eyes looked at him with a strange glow in them.

“You do dream of me,” he whispered almost reverently, a gentle frown marring his brow.

She should be incensed. She should push his hand away. She should grit her teeth and kick him out of her subconscious.

“So do you, it seems.” She hated how breathless and sultry her voice sounded.

Something shimmered in his dark gaze. The slightest of smiles graced those luscious lips, just the barest tilting of the corners of his mouth seemed to change his entire face. His features seemed less imposing, less intimidating, more…  _ kissable. _

The thought made her catch her breath.

“Aren’t you supposed to be kicking me out?” he murmured, his voice so low it seemed to vibrate in her womb.

That made her come to her senses. “I should,” she said, her voice trembling just a little.

“Then why aren’t you?”

“Why didn’t you seem surprised to wake up next to me?” she quipped.

His expression changed. It became defensive, almost aggressively so. “Because I’m not,” he retorted bluntly.

“Why?”

“Because I often dream of you in my bed. Although I usually don’t dream of merely sleeping with you,” he answered quickly.

Bright red splotches of embarrassment rode high on her cheeks. “You’re terrible,” she said and tried to turn away.

He reacted instantly. He shifted his weight and ended up pinning her down with his body. He hovered over her, leaning on his forearms, his face only a few inches from hers. They were touching from toe to chest and it sent delicious sparks up and down her nerve endings. They both held their breath for a moment.

“You were the one who wanted a monster…” He allowed his voice to trail off, reminding her of their earlier conversation. His voice once again made something inside her tremble with a feeling she couldn’t quite place.

_ Apprehension? Anticipation? _

“I never said I  _ wanted _ a monster. I said you were one as long as you keep persecuting us.”

“Really?” he murmured as he gazed into her eyes deeply.

She swallowed but kept silent.

“Why are you on the Falcon?” he countered as he narrowed his gaze.

Something flashed in her face, and she quickly adopted that stubborn stare he linked to her alone. “That’s none of your business,” she quipped smartly.

He chuckled, and the sound reverberated in her own chest. “It’s most definitely my business, Rey.” His tone was soft, almost conversational.

_ Pillow talk. Bedroom eyes… _

She closed her eyes briefly and tried to rid herself of these strange thoughts. “I don’t see how it is any of your business at all.”

“ _ You _ are my business. Thanks to our Force Bond, that is. Everything you say, think, or do is my business. So, I would like to know why you’re on the Falcon.”

Despite her better judgement, she answered him. “I live here,” she said, her chin jutting out haughtily.

A small flinch showed in his eyes, but he didn’t respond physically in any other way.

“It wouldn’t have anything to with that well I saw in our other dream, now would it? Hmmm?” His fingers captured a lock of her hair and twisted it around his index finger.

Her mouth opened at the audacity of the gesture, but found she enjoyed it despite herself. His words however, caused an entire different reaction. Ice filled her veins.

“Get off,” she hissed. He quirked an eyebrow in question. “Get off of me,” she repeated, her voice dangerously low.

He let his eyes slowly caress her face once more, as if memorizing each feature, before he complied. The rush of cold air that hit her as he rolled off her came as a surprise.

The cad had the audacity to lounge in her bed as she quickly got off of it. “Did I strike a nerve, Rey?” he asked with humor lacing his voice.

“You always strike a nerve,  _ Ben _ .” She put emphasis on his given name, knowing how much it irked him to be called that. He didn’t even seem to mind when it came from her.

“Oh, Rey…” he started on a long sigh as he propped his head on his hand, “You should have known I would figure it out. We’re linked,” he said matter-of-factly. “Sooner or later, I would have discovered your whereabouts or your plans anyway. Your mind is connected to mine.”

Hearing him say it out loud only made her stomach sink. She had been right. She had been the reason the First Order had always known where the Resistance was hiding.

“How do you do it?” she asked, her voice infused with ice.

He barked out a humorless sound that might have been a laugh at some point. “I don’t have to do much…” he said in a voice barely above a whisper.

She narrowed her eyes at him. If her eyes had been blaster bolts, he would have found himself dead on the spot.

He got off the bed in one fluid motion and stood a mere three inches away from her. He looked down into her eyes and whispered. “I told you, Rey. Wherever you go, whatever you do, I will always follow. I will always find you. I will always be close. That won’t ever change.”

Apprehension pricked at the back of her neck, but she fought it down. “So you think you will be able to find me? No matter where I go?”

He smirked. “Yes.” The single word was loaded with conviction.

She narrowed her eyes even more, a challenge visible in those hazel depths. “Very well,” she murmured. “I dare you,” she said with more force.

His eyebrows shot up. “You dare me? To what?”

“I dare you to find me,” she said as she cocked her head.“Just you…” 

It was his turn to narrow his gaze. “You want me to come find you? By myself?” He sounded pensive.

“Yes.” She replied with more bravado than she felt. “Unless you’re worried your sycophants will miss you too much?”

That reply made him snicker. His gaze searched hers for a moment before he nodded. “Very well,” he said as if lost in his own thoughts. “I will come for you. I’ll find you. And when I do, we’ll face our destiny.”

This time, Rey was the one to scoff and smirk. “Whatever you say,  _ Ben… _ ”

He then smiled at her. A real smile. One that reached his eyes and turned his face from interesting and handsome to downright breathtaking. It unbalanced her for a moment, disturbing her equilibrium.

“I’ll see you soon, Rey…” His voice sounded like a caress against her senses. His gaze locked on her lips briefly before returning to her eyes and then the connection faded out.

Rey drifted back to consciousness slowly, feeling unsettled. She looked around and noticed the covers of the bed were rumpled on  _ both _ sides.

_ It was real… _ she thought to herself.

She let out a great big sigh and settled back down. To her surprise, sleep overtook her once more. Only this time, there was no disturbance caused by a handsome enemy who made her heart flutter. This time, there was only blessed sleep…

****


	6. Orion meets Virgo: The Rational One.

When she woke up again, several hours had passed. She felt well-rested and in a good mood.

Well, until she remembered the dream again.

Determination filled her to the brim as she decided her next move. She redirected her course, primed the engines as she had done a hundred times before, and headed out again, with Artoo at her side.

She consulted with him again on possible stops along the way. They finally settled on Csilla and Rakata Prime before they ventured out into the Wild unknown. After that, they would just have to try their luck and hope for the best.

Two standard days passed as they flew from planet to planet. Rey had never seen so much diversity before. The Galaxy was a vast place, and the places they encountered varied from civilized to rough, from luscious to barren. It astounded her that she had spent her entire life on Jakku, not even aware that such places existed. To see these planets, these systems, their many different characteristics, made her all the more excited about this adventure she had taken up on a whim.

So, after making the two planned stops and filling up on fuel and supplies, they started their trek in Wild Space. A strange thrill coursed through Rey as she considered what she was doing. She had deliberately kept her comm-link down, lest the Resistance get in touch with her. She did that for two reasons. The first being that she didn’t want Ben to somehow discover their whereabouts. She wasn’t exactly sure if that was possible, but if he managed to locate her no matter where she went, he might be able to figure out their new base, too.

The second reason was far more selfish. She didn’t want to be yelled at.

She had ignored a direct order from Leia. That was bound to get her in trouble, no matter if they considered her the Hope of the Resistance or not.

Leia was like a mother to her, a role-model if ever there was one. She felt as if she was betraying Leia and her affection. Which was silly.

But there it was. The cold ugly truth.

Rey was afraid she was disappointing Leia. And not just Leia, but Finn and Poe, too. Finn would be livid. Poe would be able to understand, being the adventure-loving rebel that he was. But Finn would never understand. He was sometimes too serious, too focused on the negative. Not even Rose would be able to make him understand why Rey needed to do this. And she too, would be extremely disappointed.

And that in itself was worse than being yelled at. But the promise of finding that source of power she had seen in her dreams…

It called to her.

Even louder than the dark place beneath the island on Ahch-To, even more insistent than the mirror cave had appealed to her. This well she had seen was something else entirely.

There was a profound sense of destiny.

_ I will come for you. I’ll find you. And when I do, we’ll face our destiny. _

Ben’s words came back to haunt her. She couldn’t believe she’d challenged him to find her. What in the Galaxy had she been thinking?

But the dream… The dream kept flashing in her mind.

She hadn’t even put up a fight! That was not going to happen again. If and when he came for her, she would be ready.

She would show him that he would never be able to make her turn. The Dark Side might be powerful, but so was the Light.  _ He _ would be the one to turn. She’d seen it. And somewhere deep inside, she still believed that.

When Rey noticed her thoughts straying to him again, she closed her eyes and gritted her teeth. Determination made her clench her jaw. No matter what happened, she would find that source. She would find Orion’s Belt.

And if Ben did show up, she’d deal with it then.

She pushed the sequences to jump to lightspeed and heaved a great sigh when those familiar blueish white stripes formed around her cockpit.

For now, finding Orion’s Belt was all that mattered.

 

It only took her three more standard weeks and a ridiculous amount of stops on unknown planets and moons to find something that might be what she was looking for.

On the third week in Wild Space, she felt as if she had won a fierce battle.

Straight ahead of her, clear as day, were three stars. They were spaced with an even distance, and their sizes were equally similar. As she drew closer, she began to notice their differences.

The first orb was bright white, swirling with blue. She suspected it was a planet dominated by ice and water, but it still felt warm, compelling almost, if perhaps a little too bright. It was a sharp contrast to the one on the far right. That was a dark globe, almost black, with bright red marbling through. It reminded her of the Holovids she had seen of Mustafar, the place where Darth Vader had resided. Even from this distance she felt an aura of anger and violence. It seemed to radiate Darkness in a way she had never sensed before. Not a place she would visit if she had a choice.

The middle sphere was a typical habitable planet. Blue and green hues dominated the view, but there were also swirls of white and red visible. There was a glow about it, like an ethereal indication that this could be Balance.

Remembering what Ca’al had said, she figured she had finally arrived at Orion’s Belt.

The middle planet was the charm, he’d said, stating it was the mixture of the Light and the Dark planet. Balance, he’d called it. The description seemed accurate in any case.

She started the landing sequence, preparing to break the atmosphere and scout the planet. Rey decided she would let the Force be her guide to the source. She was confident she would know what to do.

As she broke the atmosphere, her breath caught in her throat. She had never seen anything like this before!

She was absolutely awestruck by the planet’s rugged beauty.

Bright greens mingled with colors of every gradation, mixed with swirls of white and dark. There was such an aura of peace here, so different from anything she had ever felt in her life. Never before had she been submerged in The Force as here, never had it been so tangible. Not even on Ahch-To was she ever this in tune with all living things around her.

But something was wrong.

It felt… strange. Odd. Like something wasn’t quite right.

There was an imbalance. She couldn’t detect what gave her that idea, or what lay at the base of that thought but somehow, she just  _ knew.  _

The source was very close, within walking distance. She felt it.

She landed the Falcon in a wide clearing. After making sure all the systems were shut down appropriately, she lowered the ramp and exited the freighter. Artoo beeped that he would stay inside if it was all the same with her. She assured him it was and went on her merry way.

A valley of beautiful green grass, with tiny veins of white and glowing red, greeted her. It looked like lava or fire, but Rey was surprised to find there was no heat. The white looked like ice, but there was no cold.

She frowned in amazement, not sure what to think of this strange place. All she could do was look around and be awed. So much to see, so many impressions overwhelmed her, and she did not know what to do. All these strange emotions mixing with the sense something wasn’t right made square her shoulders. She sat down on a nearby boulder and did what Luke had taught her.

Rey closed her eyes and took a deep breath. She tapped into the Force so quickly it stole that breath right from her lungs.

She saw things, heard those whispers again. Felt that warm glow swell inside her. Peace, energy filled her and she finally understood what was wrong.

There was just too much.

Too much peace. Too much light.

Too much of one side.

The Balance was gone.

She opened her eyes with a start. They were drawn to her right.

Sure enough, the cave from her dreams was there. Not only did Rey recognize it, she also felt the concentration of energy.

Rey got up and started walking in the direction of the cave. She soon found herself at the entrance of it, drawn to it beyond anything she had ever been drawn to.

_ Well, except for Ben… _

As if the mere thought of him was capable of summoning him, she sensed his Force signature. and felt the back of her neck prick. A pulling sensation started in her chest and grew stronger with every passing second.

It had been a few weeks since she had felt it, and it had been months since she had felt it this strong. It made her breath halt and her heart hammer against her ribcage.

He was coming.

_ Ben… _

She felt his nearness almost as if he was standing next to her. And just as she thought the moment would pass, Rey watched in stunned silence as his ship broke through the atmosphere and headed towards the same area where she had landed the Falcon.

He had found her.

Just like he said he would.


	7. Orion meets Sagittarius: The Reliable one

Ben was out of patience.

It had taken him almost a week to find out what Rey had been referring to.

Apparently, it was some sort of urban legend. Something about a hunter who got lost in Wild Space and happened upon a concentration of the Force. According to that old folk’s tale, he became known as the First Jedi.

As far as Ben was concerned, he couldn’t care less. If he had been the First Jedi, he should be eternally punished for the turmoil he had caused the Galaxy. But this was where Rey was going, he was sure of it.

And so, he did what he always did. He focused on her Force signature and followed it. And as was always the case, he seemed to fall a few steps behind.

_ But not this time! _

He had been pushing his TIE-Silencer to its limits, going harder and faster every single time.

After landing on the last planet and refueling in a hurry, he got the distinct impression that he had gained on her. He was getting incessantly closer and he was determined to find her. Preferably sooner than later!

And as he got closer, the tugging at his chest began in earnest. And soon he discovered that there was truth to this specific urban legend.

Before him, three stars appeared in the distance. Same size, same intermittent distance. As he drew closer still, their characteristics grew more diverse, but his instincts and their Bond told him she was on the middle planet.

Without even hesitating a moment longer, Ben sent his shuttle shooting through the planet’s atmosphere. The tugging in his chest grew stronger. The back of his neck pricked, and his breathing became ragged at the prospect of seeing her in the flesh after all this time. Much to his chagrin, his body responded again. He had been in a perpetual state of arousal since that last shared dream they’d had.

She hadn’t fought him.

His Rey hadn’t fought him when he had overturned her and covered her body with his. She hadn’t made a single indication that she didn’t want him to touch her. In fact, he could have sworn she was experiencing a similar sense of physical attraction.

But that was beside the point now.

_ My destiny awaits… _ he thought to himself as he steered his ship towards the area where that big pile of junk was stationed. How it was still capable of flying at all, let alone at such breakneck speeds and defy hyperspace was beyond him.

_ Han was a good pilot. The best… _

The thought crept up on him, and he shoved it away with a vengeance. As he primed the landing sequence, he tried to prepare himself mentally.

She wasn’t in the Falcon. He could feel it.

No, his Scavenger was out scavenging…

He lowered the ramp of his Silencer and exited soundlessly, bypassing the Falcon while he tried to push away random memories the sight of that garbage heap provoked.

To compound his suddenly overly sensitive senses, he felt as if the Force slammed into him.

There was something wrong, however.

His soul, or rather whatever was left of it, felt overexposed. He was all but blinded by the Light. As if the Balance had shifted to an unnatural level.

It was overwhelming; it seemed to be everywhere. Part of him wanted to absorb every ray of it, wanted to bask in the peaceful warmth.

The other part of him grew taut, making him want to explode in a violent rage. To trash and destroy and obliterate anything and everything in his path, just out of spite. Because he could. Because he refused to be consumed by this side of him that he’d been repressing for so long.

He would  _ not _ give in, dammit!

But his first objective was Rey. It was always Rey.

To have been without her all these months… He missed her like there was a gaping hole in his chest after she had left him. He had tried to pretend it wasn’t so. But he could not deny the fact that, even though Han and Leia had made many mistakes in raising him, they hadn’t raised him a liar.

And so he was able to admit to himself that he missed her. More than he ever thought he could miss another human being. More than anything he’d ever missed in his entire life. Ben had always thought he knew what it was like to be lonely. But it wasn’t until Rey had left him that he knew the true meaning of the word.

He needed her. And it was about time she faced her destiny and took her rightful place at his side.

_ Rey…  _

He reached out through their Bond out of habit, allowing his own Force signature to slide against hers in something that almost resembled a caress. The response was quick and stronger than it had been in months.

His every instinct told him to go right, towards the edge of the forest he saw. He would find her there. He knew it.

_ And now, My Rey, we meet again… _

 


	8. Orion meets Aquarius: The Impulsive one.

Rey entered the cave with trepidation.

She didn’t know if there was a way out of this cave other than the way she had gotten in, but she decided to risk it anyway. Ben would be here soon, and she wanted to be the first to find the source.

And she realized his presence threw things off balance even more. Because where before the Light seemed to be overly present, she felt Darkness slide against her skin, like it changed the air around her, enveloping her in its inky blackness, trying to suffocate any good and light and honesty from her very soul.

In a sense, it worked.

Every fiber of her being rebelled against this Dark onslaught.

She wanted to fight it, to keep it from grabbing her and pulling her under. She would  _ not _ give in again, not like she had in that cave on Ahch-To. The things she had seen there had been nothing but a mirage, a cruel twisted version of what she had expected or wanted.

The only good thing that had come from that night was that she had connected with Ben on a different level.

_ Yes, and look where that got you… _

She squared her shoulders in protest and trudged on, getting closer and closer to the actual spring. Rey  _ had _ to find it first.

The tinkling sound and the whispers seemed to grow louder and louder and she knew it wouldn’t be far now. But there were other sounds too.

Strong, heavy footsteps echoed and bounced off the walls of the cave. Fast and determined, they pounded the floor of the cave, the contrast with her own silent steps striking. Rey tried to hurry and almost lost her footing on one of the slicker rocks that lay in the bedding. She rounded a corner and drew to a full stop.

_ There it is! _

She had found the well. Her mouth agape, she could do nothing but stare. It was beautiful!

A bright and still soft yellowish glow lit up the entire cave. It seemed to flow, not unlike water but more like fabric, more substantial. Like a thick goo but too light to be anything sticky.

It was unlike anything she had ever seen.

The gentle tinkling sound was only slightly louder than before, and the whispers seemed softer, their words muffled but the intent was clear. Rey got the distinct impression that it was a mixture of the Sith and Jedi code.

Without being aware of it, her feet carried her closer to the spring of the well. She reached out and was close to touching it when she was brought to a halt by a single word.

“Rey.”

She whirled and stared at him. The Supreme Leader of the First Order.

The son of her own leader.

Her arch nemesis.

“Ben.”

She hated how detached she sounded when she had heard nothing but awe in his voice. His presence affected her more than she wanted to admit, but she couldn’t let him know that. Her breathing quickened, and she tried in vain to control her heart rate.

“You’re too late,” she said brusquely. “I found it first.”

He snorted in disdain. “Oh, please. I didn’t come here for the well,” Ben said with a dark glint in his eyes.

Rey frowned at the intensity of his words. He seemed even more determined than she’d ever seen him. Ben took several steps closer until they were about five feet apart. She had to tilt her head back to keep looking at him. His gaze locked with hers and her lips parted involuntarily.

“I came here for you.”

The sound of his deep voice sent shivers down her spine, eliciting a delicious little quiver along her nerve endings, like tiny electrical currents full of energy. Goosebumps broke out on her arms and she had never been more grateful for her arm wraps.

“Like you wanted me to…” he all but whispered. Ben’s voice was slightly hoarse, as if he’d either been shouting way too much or keeping silent for too long.

Rey found herself searching those dark eyes for ulterior motives and found none. Everything about this tall, brooding man seemed to be sincere and she realized that he had never lied to her.

_ Ever. _

He had always been honest, even if that meant being brutal. But he had never lied to her, nor allowed her to lie to herself. And he had always been… well…, kind to her, more or less. Moreso that she would have expected from an enemy who was supposed to want to kill her.. And he was actually very handsome, in a nonconventional way.

She steeled herself against her own traitorous thoughts, careful to shield them from the man standing across from her.

“I didn’t  _ want _ you to find me, Ben,” she said dryly. “I merely dared you to.”

The slightest of frowns marred his forehead and she watched the muscle beneath his left eye and next to his nose twitched. It was a physical manifestation of his disagreement, of his anger. One she didn’t know if he was aware of.

She realized with a start that this must be one of the reasons why he had worn his mask for so long. His face was too soft, too open, too honest. Anything and everything he thought, imagined, or felt would show unless he really made an effort.

_ Like when Snoke ordered him to kill me… _

“You need to stop lying,” he said softly, barely above a whisper. He took another step forward.

“You’re delusional,” she quipped.

His lips turned upward in a half smile. “So I’ve been told.”

His gaze still bored into hers, and his eyes never left her face. “Admit it, Rey,” he murmured softly. “You wanted me to find you. Probably because you think it would keep me from chasing after the Resistance…” His voice was laced with something very close to arrogance.

Her breathing caught and quickened. “And if I admit to it, what will you do?” she asked, her voice harsh despite a slight tremor.

“Sooner or later the Resistance will have to yield. Their days are numbered, you know that.” He cocked his head and looked at her almost teasingly. “Either you join me or you lose. They are already lost.”

Anger shot through her, red-hot and fierce. “You’re wrong. And I will never join the First Order,” she hissed.

Her hand suddenly grasped at something at her back and she produced a long object. As he looked at it, he recognized it as the hilt of a lightsaber. His gaze flew to hers.

She had constructed a new lightsaber.

A surge of pride coursed through him at the realization she had figured out how to build one on her own. But he quickly sobered at the look of anger in her eyes. She was so furious she was trembling with it.

She ignited the lightsaber and a bright blue plasma beam lit up the cave.

“I did not come here to fight you,” he said evenly, trying to hold on to his own anger and disappointment. “I came here to make you see reason.”

“There is no reason in the Dark Side!” she shouted. “There is only anger and pain.”

“And passion,” he said, strangely subdued. He took a deep breath and looked at her with a pleading look. “There is too much passion in you to ever be a Jedi, Rey, don’t you see that?”

He took another step forward, the muscles in his face twitching furiously. “You will never be able to abide by their rules. There is too much life in you to ever fully adapt to the Light Side teachings. You are meant for greater things, and you know it.” he said calmly.

“Rey, join me. I’ll teach you about the Force.” He was pleading.

She frowned.  _ What was he up to? _

She studied him for a moment or two, this whole situation too strange and strained to be real, it seemed. She lifted her chin and met his gaze levelly.

“Alright,” she said and watched a confused but happy sort of surprise overtake his features. “Alright, I’ll join you. On one condition.”

She watched quietly as he swallowed hard and his lips pursed in that insecure way that was oddly endearing. “I will join you if you return to the Light.”

His face contorted, and he stepped back as if she’d slapped him. Anger rose in him visibly. “You know I can’t,” he ground out.

“Then you know I can’t either,” she retorted sharply.

Something flashed in his eyes and she recognized it. The disappointment. The realization.  _ Acceptance _ .

“So be it,” he said, his voice morose. She watched as he reluctantly thumbed his lightsaber. “Then you leave me no choice.”

The tinkling of the well grew louder; the strange whispers sounded furious. He twirled his saber in that trademark way of his.

“On opposite sides once more.”

Regret flashed through her, but she gritted her teeth and replied. “So it seems.”

“Then let’s end this,” he said sullenly.

_ How had things come this far? _

Rey closed her eyes and took a deep breath. She needed to keep her head straight. But as she opened her eyes again, anger overtook her once more. This man would willingly destroy not only her friends, but his own mother! Just to prove a point.

She let out a fierce growl and brought her lightsaber up and downward in a vicious stroke.

Ben had seen it coming a mile away, aided by the Force, and blocked it easily. He twirled his lightsaber and attacked in a backhanded strike, the blow so forceful it made her arms tremble and ache just to block it and push him back.

They parried and sparred, going through a series of movements as if it were nothing but practice. They were so equally matched it was hard for either of them to gain the upper hand. What Ben had in physical strength, Rey made up for with speed and agility.

Their grunts and shrieks filled the cave, echoing off the stone walls. The well seemed to sparkle brighter, the sounds it produced growing incessantly louder, but Ben and Rey were too engrossed in their fight to notice such trivial things.

They hacked and slashed and blocked with ever growing speed and strength. Instead of growing tired, they grew incensed. Rey kicked and hit and shoved, while Ben ducked out of range most of the time. For reasons he didn’t understand, he still didn’t want to hurt her.

So he refrained from hitting her back, despite the fact she held no such consideration for him. She attacked with an overhead spin and aimed to slash at his chest, and he blocked it. They locked in battle, blade pushing against blade, much like they had on that cliff on Starkiller Base.

“Rey, see reason!” he yelled, his voice trembling with the effort to maintain his hold. “We don’t have to do this!”

Anger flashed viciously in her eyes. “Then come back to us!” she shouted right back at him.

“Join me, Rey! I will teach you both ways,” he pleaded, though his anger was apparent.

“No!” she screamed. “I don’t belong to the Dark! And neither do you!”

_ Come back to me _ … she thought silently but was smart enough to keep the thought hidden away in the darkest corner of her mind.

“Rey!” he roared as he gave her a huge shove, breaking the locked hold they were in. They stormed at each other and attacked simultaneously with all the power they had.

Their blades clashed so violently that they were both thrown back, a large power bubble exploding between them, their lightsabers thrown from their hands. They landed far out of reach, disabled and quite possibly broken from the power of that attack.

Rey and Ben landed on opposite sides of the cave, the well in between them. Neither of them noticed that it was trembling and sputtering, the twinkles and glitters in its golden light vibrating violently. They scrambled to their feet and they reached out simultaneously through the Force, almost as if they were back at the Throne Room, trying to draw the legacy lightsaber back to them. But this time, they were using the Force on each other, trying to make the other submit to it.

The earth beneath them began to tremble. The cavern seemed to rumble and shudder, but they ignored it. They both cried out viciously, still drawing upon the Force to make the other yield. The rumble only grew louder, the tremors now shaking the entire cave, making the ceiling above them crack. And still they did not relent.

Rey drew up her second hand, determined to push him away with everything she had. Ben anticipated her movement and mirrored it in the exact same moment.

A fierce shout escaped his lips and she screamed in response. They drew upon the Force with everything they had…

And then it happened.

The source of Power that was the well had had enough.

With a mounting crescendo, the whispers turned into screeching. The twinkling sounds turned into something that sounded similar to alarm bells. The golden glow became brighter and brighter, morphing into a blinding white light.

A loud bang shook the cave, and the well exploded into a big ball of blinding light and a million slivers dissipated into the air. An earthquake made the entire cave jolt and shudder, and then everything went quiet and dark.


	9. Orion meets Cancer: The Caring one.

Ben was the first to awaken.

He was still in the cave, but it was dark. Rubble was piled around him and the smell of dust and embers hung heavily in the air. For a moment, he couldn’t recall where he was or what had happened.

Out of habit, he checked himself physically, mentally going over every limb to make sure he was still in one piece. Aside from his clothing being torn and a small wound on his head that was bleeding into his eye, he was mainly unharmed.

A sound from the other side of the cave reached him and it seemed to jolt him back to the present. He instantly remembered everything.

“Rey!” he exclaimed, worry overtaking him.

He scrambled to his feet and made his way to the other side, where her slender figure lay sprawled on the cavern floor.

“Rey?” He grabbed her shoulders and gave her a gentle shake. He ignored the tingling in his hands at the contact.

A murmur escaped her lips and her eyelids fluttered. They opened briefly, but it was enough for him to see that she was clearly still unconscious. He braced himself on his knees and bent down to lift her in his arms.

He hadn’t held her this close in person since Takodana. A thousand details at once overwhelmed him.

The weight of her in his arms, the scent of her, the softness of her skin where it brushed against his fingers where his glove was torn. The way her head lolled against his shoulder, the sensation of her even breathing against his neck and how it sent shivers down his spine…

Determination made him square his shoulders, and he set off towards the exit of the cave.

It didn’t take him long to get there, and once he was out in the open, he noticed that night had fallen. How much time had they spent inside that cave? He didn’t know, nor did he know how the daily cycles of this planet were. For all he knew, it had a very short solar cycle.

He started off in the general direction of the ships, knowing that staying there would be the best thing to do right now. And as much as he loathed the very idea, he knew that the wisest decision would be to stay in the Falcon. It was the larger of the two ships, and despite the TIE-Silencer being the more modern and equipped ship when it came to technology, the Falcon was the one with several sleeping quarters, a fresher, and he just knew Rey would have plenty of food and medical supplies there.

So, much to his dismay, he set off for the Millenium Falcon.

The trek there was short and he arrived within a span of twenty standard minutes. He tried to push the button to lower the ramp with the Force, but it didn’t comply. After some fumbling and shifting Rey in his arms, he managed to physically push it and the ramp was lowered.

He hesitated briefly, but a tight sound from Rey made up his mind for him. He stormed up the ramp and immediately went towards the largest of the back rooms, the one he knew his father had once occupied.

Nothing had changed. Everything was still in the same place it had been over twenty years ago.

A strange sort of nostalgia washed over him, but he pushed it aside as he stepped forward and lowered Rey down on the bed gently.

He turned back towards the main room and, without thinking twice, walked up to the cabinet where he knew Han kept the medical supplies. He took the scanner and a few bacta-patches and was about to step back when he all but ran into Artoo.

The droid beeped in alarm and started cussing at him, ready to pitch a fight.

Ben just took a deep breath, clamped his jaw tight and bit out a sharp reply. “Not now, Artoo, I have to get this to Rey.”

The droid beeped again in alarm, and a few more angry and accusatory beeps came in quick succession.

“I didn’t do anything to her, you big old piece of junk!” he quipped angrily and stepped around him. “Now get out my way, before I put you in low power mode manually.”

Artoo let out a series of low beeps that translated into: “I’d like to see you try, Ben Solo!”

Ben just muttered sarcastically in response. “Yeah, it’s nice to see you again, too…”

He used the scanner to make a preliminary diagnosis. When there was nothing more to be found but a few bruises and a scrape here and there, Ben just applied the bacta to the nicks and cuts and then left her to sleep.

He went back into the main room and made some caf, feeling the need for it.

As he sank down in the seat next to the Dejarik table, he took a few sips and felt fatigue overwhelm him once more. He put his cup away and slipped back into blissful darkness.

 

When he woke up again, he felt completely disoriented.

_ What in the Hell am I doing here again? _

Then, slowly one by one the pieces of the puzzle clicked back into place. Rey, Orion’s Belt, their fight, the explosion...

He heard her scuffle around in Han’s old room. He gingerly raised himself up, feeling oddly weak and stiff. He got up and groaned when his joints protested, then walked over to the room and watched her from the doorway.

Rey was sitting at the edge of the bed, yawning and stretching, and dammit, but it was the cutest thing he’d ever seen anyone do in a long time. He ignored the sharp attraction he felt towards her, as he always tried to do. Somehow, it turned out to be harder than usual.

When she was done stretching and yawning and had picked at her eyelashes absently, she noticed him leaning against the doorframe.

“You!” she shouted angrily as she leapt to her feet. She reached out to the Force and aimed for a miniature Falcon that was on one of the shelves, fully intending to hurl it at his handsome face. He automatically ducked behind the door frame.

But nothing happened.

Both of them stood there, rooted on the spot.

Rey stared at her hand with a frown, and Ben stuck his head around again. He stared at her with a confused look on his face.

“Why aren’t you throwing that thing at me?” he asked hesitantly.

She looked up with an equally confounded look. “I thought I was!” she responded.

Rey looked down at her hand again, then back at the miniature Falcon on the shelf, then at her hand once more.

She closed her eyes briefly, tried to find the Force inside her again, then opened her eyes and reached out for the Falcon, willing it into her hand.

Nothing.

“It’s not working…” she whispered in shock.

Ben’s jaw dropped. “What do you mean, it’s not working?” he asked bluntly.

She looked up at him, those big hazel eyes staring up at him in horror. “I mean I can’t feel it.”

A hint of worry shone in his gaze, but he tried to stay calm. Ben reached out with his hand and did exactly what Rey had just done. He willed the Falcon to fly to his outstretched palm. And just like with Rey, nothing happened. He tried again, once more in vain.

Alarm crept in to his features. “You’re right. It’s not working…”

Rey’s eyes narrowed. “What did you do?” she asked, her voice carrying a lethal undertone.

“What do you mean, what did I do?” he countered equally incensed. “I didn’t do anything!”

“Of course you did! This is all your fault!” she raised her voice.

He snorted and scoffed. “Of course, it’s my fault. Everything always is,” Ben bit out, the bitterness barely concealed with anger.

“Yes, this is all your fault! You’re the one who threw the source out of balance!”

He threw his hands in the air in an exasperated gesture. “Oh sure! Let’s not mention the fact that it was unbalanced to begin with!”

“It was fine before you showed up!”

His face contorted in anger and he spat another remark through gritted teeth, pointing his finger in her direction. “Yes, of course! You’re absolutely right! And you probably were so encased in the Light that you didn’t reach out to the Dark Side and started to fight me either…”

Outside of the Falcon, they could feel the earth rumble beneath them. Lightning flashed outside the Falcon’s windshield. Thunder roared.

“You provoked this!”

“How did I provoke this?”

“You chased me here.”

His eyes narrowed at her. “You all but begged me to!” He raised his voice as much as she had.

“I did not!”

“Sure you did!”

“I dared you to come find me! I would hardly call that begging…”

“Oh, please! You would have been hugely disappointed if I hadn’t come back for you, just like everyone else has and you know it!”

The sharp intake of her breath and the sudden narrowing of her eyes made him aware of the fact that he had gone too far. The need to apologize pressed inside his chest, the words on the tip of his tongue. But he kept them bottled up, pushed down.

“ _ That _ …” she started in a voice that was barely above a whisper and gritty with emotion, “was a stab in the back and completely uncalled for.”

She stepped closer slowly, deliberately. “You…” she hissed, “should be very grateful that we seem to be without the Force right now. Because trust me, I would have gladly tried my hand at one of those Force chokes you seem to be so fond of.” She halted right in front of him, glaring at him with all the viciousness of a rathtar. “And now, I want you to get off my ship.” She growled low in her throat and shoved at his chest. But without the Force, it was like pushing at a wall. He didn’t even budge.

He did however hiss at the contact of her hands against his chest. The fabric was torn here and there, and the pad of her left index finger touched his bare skin. He grabbed her wrists in reflex. Her breath whooshed out.

Ben felt an obscene need to push her up the wall and claim her lips. But he fought it with every ounce of self-restraint he had in him. Physically he outmatched her, but if a woman like her was angry enough…

She’d kill him, one way or another, he was sure of it. But still -- The attraction he felt for her had never been this strong. He couldn’t help but lean in a little closer, bringing his face mere inches from hers.

“Next time…” Ben’s voice trailed off as the temptation of stealing a kiss grew stronger with every passing second. “Use the word ‘please’,” he whispered hoarsely.

He let go of her wrists but couldn’t resist letting his hands slide over hers in something that resembled a caress. His gloves, torn and broken, revealed skin and fingers and the contact of skin on skin was startling. Even as small as the touch was, it was almost as exciting at touching her hand that night she’d confronted the mirror beneath the island.

He pushed the memory from his mind, not enjoying the gnawing pain it continuously caused.

He turned and quickly exited the Falcon, happy to be free of the constrained piece of junk his father had adored so much.

Rey watched in silence as he fled towards his TIE-Silencer, his long strides eating away the distance with ease. The unexpected physical contact at the end of their argument had been surprising. Not to mention titillating…

The attraction she had felt on Starkiller when he removed his helmet had never fully disappeared. And now, what had started out as a small flickering flame seemed to grow into a devastating inferno at times. It was disconcerting and exciting at the same time.  She couldn’t help but rehash the entire scene in her mind. And the fight they’d had before the wellspring had exploded.

_ How did I get back? _

She walked out into the main room and Artoo came her way, beeping at her with obvious relief. He spontaneously started recounting his own argument with Ben, and Rey found herself snickering at some of the expletives the old droid used.

By what he had to say, she discovered that Ben had apparently carried her back to the Falcon, making sure she was comfortable. According to Artoo, he had also tended to her wounds, scanning her for injuries and applying bacta where necessary and flipping off Artoo when he tried to keep him away from her.

The rumbling outside ceased. The lightning slowly died and so did the thunder.

Her anger died down slowly as well. ****


	10. Orion meets Capricorn: The Practical one

Much to her dismay, she had to admit to herself that she had been the one to start the fight. And that she probably should be a little more grateful. If it hadn’t been for him, she’d still be lying on the floor of that cave, hurt and cold.

She should probably go over there and apologize, but she couldn’t bring herself to do it. The man simply brought out the worst in her. Then again, she had seen something in him that gave her hope, hadn’t she?

She had risked everything to go to him once, all those months ago. She’d looked into his mind on Starkiller Base and seen things that she had understood. She had felt the same indignation and hurt he had when she found out Luke had lied to her about him as he had when Luke had tried to kill him.

She had seen and understood the hold Snoke held over him, had realized it was mostly Snoke who forced his will upon the young man all those years. She had seen him in her vision she’d had in the mirror cave, had seen his potential and his future. He would turn.

And she couldn’t deny the fact that despite everything that had happened since that fateful day on the Supremacy, she still held out hope.

Ben Solo was still there. The Light was still there. She knew it.

She glanced over at the TIE-Silencer again. Rey couldn’t help but think that despite all of its modern technology, the Falcon was probably still more comfortable. And she had more than enough rations.

“What do you think, Artoo?” she said quietly. “Do you think I should invite him over for a meal? He could probably do with a visit to the fresher too. I can’t help but feel he doesn’t like to be unclean for long.” The  memory of his bare chest popped back up out of the darkest recesses of her mind and she blushed fiercely.

The droid didn’t notice as he beeped his response. The slow succession of words translated roughly into: “I don’t think that’s such a good idea. How do you know he can be trusted?”

“We’re both Forceless right now, Artoo,” she said calmly. “Besides, we don’t have our lightsabers. And even if we did have them, they would be as useless as sticks without the Force backing them up.”

The droid let out a series of sounds that combined into the question: “So what do you suggest? Just go over there?”

She crossed her arms over her chest and cocked her head. She was lost in thought for a moment or two, thinking about possible options and scenarios.

Eventually, Rey let out a deep sigh and let her arms drop at her sides. “I’m going over there, Artoo,” she said with determination.

Without waiting for the droid’s response, she walked down the ramp and crossed the space between their ships. She walked up the ramp to his ship and banged on the outer casing.

It took a few moments, but eventually Ben arrived at the door. He frowned at her, his displeasure obvious.

Rey caught her breath at the sight of him. He had taken off his torn clothing and stood before her in his leather pants and a black sleeveless shirt that stretched across his wide chest. His hair was disheveled, hanging over his forehead roguishly and his eyes held a wary glint. He looked breathtakingly handsome and rugged, and it took every ounce of concentration she had to remember why she was there.

“What do you want?” he bit out sharply.

She swallowed and felt as if this planet would crack open and gobble her up whole. “I came to apologize,” she blurted out.

His eyebrows shot up and all but disappeared into his hairline. That wary glint was intensified, and she decided to just go right ahead and get it over with.

“You were right. I did start the fight,” she continued haltingly. “And I realized that you must have taken me and brought me back to the Falcon when you woke up and were probably hurt too. Artoo told me you put me on the bed and tended to my wounds. You treated me with more fairness than I probably deserved. So I owe you both an apology and my gratitude.”

Silence stretched between them as he regarded her intensely. It soon grew uncomfortable.

“Aren’t you going to say something?”

He scoffed. “What would you want me to say?” Ben countered easily.

Rey frowned at his response. “I don’t know,” she admitted with shrug.

Another moment of silence hung between them as he studied her and she stared at the tips of her boots.

He sighed loudly. “You’re welcome,” he said with a decidedly bored tone.

She looked up and caught his eyes. They were softer than she had seen them in a long time, their color lighter than she remembered. Rey decided then and there to be bold.

“May I come in?”

He drew in a deep breath and raised his chin. “Why?” he asked, his suspicion evident in his stance.

She smiled up at him. It reached her eyes and made her nose wrinkle. She looked so darned cute he had trouble remembering his own name.

“I’ve never been inside a TIE-Silencer before.”

He snorted at that but contemplated it nonetheless. He tilted his head to the side and gave her a slow once-over that made her skin tingle. He nodded and turned around as he murmured something that sounded a lot like, “Fine. Whatever.”

He didn’t know how much he resembled his mother in that instance, and Rey figured now wasn’t the time to let him know either. She crossed the threshold and immediately her breath caught in her chest.

It was a beauty.

The newest and latest tech was used to make it as high-end as possible. She glanced over at the cockpit.

“Do you mind?” she said as she pointed at the cockpit.

He inclined his head and his hand and responded with a sweep of his hand. “Go right ahead.”

She took a few steps and then sat down in the pilot’s seat. He heard her intake of breath and watched in fascination as she let her hands slowly glide over the control panel.

His own breath caught in his throat as he watched how her hand slid over the toggle, slowly caressing it in an upward motion and smoothing back down. The thought it brought to mind made him blush. He was not ignorant in the concept of lust and desire, but never before had the subject been so tangible in his awareness.

Rey seemed to bring out a whole string of these wicked but pleasant and slightly tortuous thoughts in him. He remembered their shared dream and how right she had felt beneath him.

His trousers grew uncomfortably tight and he clenched his fists as frustration swept through him like a tidal wave again, the way it always did in her presence. It only intensified when she glanced back and looked up at him with her eyes all sparkly and her cheeks flushed. She was biting her bottom lip and smiled up at him adoringly.

“She’s a beauty.”

He cleared his throat and tried his best to sound detached. “She is that.”

He failed horribly. His voice sounded hoarse and husky, and slightly breathless.

Rey didn’t seem to catch on, however. She got up and innocently asked him a question that made his situation go from bad to practically unbearable.

“Where do you sleep?”

She stood within an arm's reach and he had to fight himself to stop from putting his arm out and pulling her to him. He cleared his throat again and tried to form coherent words.

“The pilot’s chair can recline into a horizontal position to allow for sleeping purposes.”

“You sleep on the pilot’s chair?” she asked, a frown marring that pretty forehead. Her face scrunched up into disbelief.

“Yes,” he answered simply.

“Well, you don’t have to,” Rey said, and then felt like she wanted to slam her head into the wall at the suggestive sound of it.

She let out a small groan and continued in a more rational tone. “What I meant to say is, you don’t have to stay here as long as we’re on this planet. The Falcon has plenty of sleeping quarters. You’re welcome to stay there if you want.”

She looked up at him from beneath her lashes and he watched in tortured fascination as her tongue darted over her lips, making them look glossy and full and very kissable indeed…

“At least you’d be getting some decent rest while we try to figure out a way to find out what’s going on with our powers.”

Ben just looked at her as if she’d gone insane. “You want me to come stay with you on the Falcon?” He sounded completely incredulous.

“Why not?” she asked with a little laugh. She didn’t need their Bond to know his thoughts right now. “For Maker’s sake, Ben…” she said with a hint of irritation sounding in her voice. “We need to figure out what happened to our powers and how to get them back. That will be a lot easier to do when we don’t have to hobble up and down between ships. The Falcon is large enough to house both of us.”

A single brow lifted in question as he gave her a reply. “And you think you’ll be able to handle having me around in such close quarters?”

A wide smile broke on her face and her eyes twinkled merrily. “Oh, I think I know just how to handle you, Ben Solo.” She chuckled and continued in an amused tone, “Go get your things and come over. I’ll fix us some rations for supper while you step into the fresher and we can try to come up with a solution for our problems.”

She turned without waiting for a reply and headed back to the Falcon without looking back. Ben watched in silence as she sashayed towards the ship, her hips tilting in a way  _ she _ would never consider enticing.

The thought of being with her on his father’s ship, in such close quarters…

But for some unfathomable reason, he walked around his own ship, gathering his things and an extra set of clothing and slowly made his way over to the piece of junk.

_ I have a bad feeling about this, _ he thought to himself, but he sauntered over to the Falcon anyway.

He walked up the ramp and entered the Falcon and was immediately drawn in by the sight of Rey rummaging around in the pantry to get the necessary rations for their meal. She looked over at him and smiled.

“I’m fairly sure you remember where the fresher is. Go right ahead and get cleaned up. I’ll have a meal ready by the time you’re done.”

She turned back to the pantry and gave him no further notice, so he dispassionately shuffled towards the fresher to do as she told.

By the time he had showered and dressed, she had indeed prepared a meal. Nothing like what he was used to, but better than nothing he supposed.

She ate like a savage, but he couldn’t blame her considering what he had seen of her life on Jakku. In a strange sort of way, it even pleased him to watch her eat with such gusto.

When she caught him staring at him, she got a belligerent look on her face, wiped her mouth on her arm wrap and lifted her chin.

“I know. I eat like a loth cat.”

Ben smiled. A real smile, one that slowly spread across his face and reached his eyes.

“I don’t mind.” He answered softly.

Rey frowned. “You’d be the first,” she said bluntly.

That made him laugh. The sound seemed to startle him, but that didn’t stop him. He tilted his head slightly and lifted a shoulder in a careless shrug. A silence hung between them after that, but it wasn’t uncomfortable.

They cleaned up after the meal and discussed various theories on what had happened to their powers.

They ended up getting into an argument and the earth beneath them rumbled and shook. It was almost as if the source of the Force on this planet didn’t like it when they argued. But they were both too busy fighting each other to notice.

They locked themselves in their rooms afterwards, to cool down. Later, they emerged again, apologized, and picked up where they left off with the discussion.

This went on for three days. Ben and Rey would go through the motions of the day and seemed to be perfectly in tune with each other for most of the time. Their daily routines were easy enough; they worked together as if they had done so all their lives. But whenever they started to discuss options or plans to regain their powers, they butted heads and got into arguments, sometimes near the point of violence.

On the evening of the fourth day, it happened again.

They had finished their meal and had finished cleaning their utensils away. As Rey was fixing a thermos of caf, they had gotten into another argument. It had started over a trivial little issue, but it escalated rather quickly and it went so far that Rey actually slapped him.

The moment her hand had connected with his cheek, she felt terrible. Sure, he deserved it, he had crossed the line with his remark but still… She would never have thought of slapping someone like that. Shock overtook her as they both inhaled sharply. His cheek turned a deep shade of red, the contour of her hand displayed all over his face. She ignored her confusing emotions and went with anger. 

“How dare you!” she hissed.

His eyes burned with anger and rage, but he just stood there, staring at her for the longest time. All the while, he was breathing hard and deep through his nose with his jaw clenched. Rey could do nothing but stare at him and watch his nostrils flare.

“Don’t  _ ever _ do that again,” he ground out through clenched teeth. He spun around on his heel and stalked out of the Falcon, slamming his fist against the durasteel wall as he started down the ramp.

She stood there, rooted to the spot, completely ashamed and baffled about what she had just done. Yes, he deserved it. Without a doubt. Anger filled her again as she remembered his words, but she had never slapped anyone in her life! Rey stared at the floor and felt a big, fat tear slip down her cheek.

_ What is wrong with me? What is going on lately? _

She contemplated her best route of action as she waited for the caf to be brewed. She would have to apologize. Again. Because slapping someone was beneath her, even if he did deserve it. She shouldn’t have done that. In slapping him, she’d crossed a line. She just hoped he would accept it. Their fragile truce was at stake. Another tear slipped down, catching on her lip.

As the caf finished its final drip, she filled two cups.

Caf would be a good peace offering, right?


	11. Orion meets Leo: The Protective one.

Ben had gone outside and had built a fire on a whim. It felt good to watch those logs burn and crack, watching them be destroyed and consumed by the red flames.

He was angry. Because he was hurt. Which made him angry again for being hurt. Watching the wood burn alleviated some of the pain.

For some twisted reason, he had never thought Rey would actually go as far as to slap him. Push him, hit him, yell at him and hurl stuff at his head, yes. But slapping him across the face? It was personal, reaching deep in a way their constant fights over the balance of the Force didn’t. It was like the time they had spent together, growing closer the past few days, hadn’t mattered at all. The contour of her hand still burned on his cheek, a reminder of her temper.

It wasn’t the physical pain that wounded him as much as the fact that she had lashed out like this. Somehow, he hadn’t expected her to. He thought they’d had developed an understanding of sorts. 

Of course, she had never hesitated to attack him before either. But that had always seemed different. It didn’t help that he figured that from her point of view, he’d deserved it. He’d never contemplated it like this before, because she had always been his equal, and somehow he always knew that it wasn’t personal. Not really anway.

This slap… That was personal.

He sat down on a boulder and stared into the fire as he rehashed the whole argument again in his mind. It had started out simple enough. Just a disagreement as usual. About the Resistance vs the First Order.

The subject came up every other hour. She couldn’t believe he would support something as awful and destructive as the First Order, he tried to convince her that the Resistance was nothing more but a bunch of entitled and glory-hungry guerilla fighters fighting a hopeless cause.

 

_ “You cannot honestly mean that?” she had retorted angrily. _

_ He chuckled. _

_ “You know I do.” _

_ “I don’t understand how you can stomach being the Supreme Leader of the First Order, when you know of the atrocities they perform!” _

_ “And you honestly believe the Resistance’s hands are clean? They’re just as bad as the First Order, if not worse! At least we’re trying to bring peace and order to the Galaxy. You’re just bringing more anarchy and chaos to it.” _

_ “We are trying to do the same thing as you think you are, but we’re not exploiting and murdering entire systems! We try to give our people a sense of purpose, their best traits are put to good use. Like Poe’s ability to fly or Finn’s ability to teach.” _

_ Fury crashed into him like a tidal wave at the sound of their names spoken with such blatant affection. “Is that what you console yourself with when you’re in their arms at night?” _

_ Her eyes had widened and her hand had connected with his cheek. Hard. _

_ He honestly hadn’t thought about it. But when she had mentioned the Traitor and Flyboy, it always got on his nerves. And to hear her say their names with such affection… _

_ Images of his scavenger in the arms of either one, locked in a passionate embrace flashed before his mind’s eye. Jealousy had reared its ugly head and he couldn’t help it. The words just kind of slipped. But dammit, she belonged with him and the mere thought of her having any kind of fuzzy feelings for any of those Resistance jerks… _

_ The moment her hand connected with his cheek, it was his pride that had taken the beating. _

_ He was slammed back into reality. In her mind, he obviously had no claim over her. Or she would have been able to see why he said what he said, right? _

_ Her silly little slap stung, but his heart cringed because of it. She’d never slapped him before. They’d fought, sure. But that was never personal. But this… _

He snapped out of his reverie.

It wouldn’t do.

She didn’t understand why he reacted the way he did, and without their Bond, she never would.

How he wished he could turn back time and go back to the moment before the fight in the cave. How he longed to be able to sense her again, to be able to link with her so intimately again without all these confusing arguments.

He wasn’t too ashamed to admit to himself that he missed it. Missed her. Being in her head, knowing her thoughts and feeling her emotions as his own. Of trying to fight her to open it up again. Of sharing his dreams with her…

A sound to his left caught his attention and he looked up.

Rey stood a few feet away, that hideous shawl of hers wrapped around her shoulders. She was holding two cups of caf.

“I figured you might like a cup.” She spoke softly as she held out one of the cups. Her hesitation was apparent.

His jaw locked but he was smart enough to simply reach out and take the cup from her. Their fingers brushed briefly and he was surprised to feel a tiny jolt of electricity course through him at the contact. It shot straight to his groin and he felt his body respond faster than he could blink.

He quickly averted his eyes and stared into the cup.

“Mind if I join you?”

He looked up again and saw something in her eyes that he knew all too well. The fear of rejection, hidden well but visible to those who knew the sentiment like he did.

“Go ahead,” he murmured as he refocused his attention to the caf, cradling the tiny cup in his large hands.

She sat down on the boulder next to his and pulled her shawl a little closer. Despite the fire, there was a chill in the air tonight. As if the pleasant weather of the past few days was about to change.

The silence between them stretched uncomfortably as they were both lost in their own thoughts.

Rey’s voice broke it. “I’m sorry,” she said in a voice barely audible above the crackling of the fire.

He looked at her and was fascinated by the glow of the fire that flickered across her face. Her delicate features seemed to be bathed in a golden glow, her hazel eyes seemed to shimmer like molten lava and he was transported back to another time and place when he had watched her over a fire. It had been the point of no return for him. The pivotal moment when he knew in his heart that he would give up everything and everyone if she would only stay with him.

He swallowed hard and was about to respond when she continued again.

“I shouldn’t have slapped you. I don’t know what I was thinking. Actually, I wasn’t thinking. I just reacted, and I’m sorry. I didn’t mean to. I would like to think I am above that.”

The look in her eyes was so sincere and honest, it made his heart skip a beat. He had to avert his gaze to avoid being sucked in there and then.

She was still his everything. He would still give up everything and everyone if she would just stay with him. If she would just care enough. The thought made him uncomfortable, knowing she didn’t feel the same.

“Don’t worry about it,” he muttered under his breath. “I deserved it. I shouldn’t have…”, his voice trailed off and he scowled. Fear of making a fool of himself even more than he already had was tying his insides in knots. But he knew he needed to say these words if he wanted things to be resolved. 

“I shouldn’t have said what I did. It was petty and childish and I know it isn’t true.” His voice was soft, his embarrassment obvious in the way he couldn’t look at her. “It’s just that I know how much you care about them. Before… when we still had the Bond between us... “ he continued haltingly, his voice hoarse and gruff, as if he was literally swallowing his own pride, “things were easier. I knew how you felt. I knew what you thought. I could tap into your emotions easily. Now… now I just have to assume. It’s harder than I imagined. I’m the one who owes you an apology, Rey. Not the other way around.”

She stared at him with surprised. This wasn’t like him. Or was it? A smile curved her lips as a thought popped into her head. 

_ I should have slapped him a lot sooner if this is the result…  _

“You know,…” she started and then trailed off. She snorted and shook her head.

He frowned and was about to ask her what she was talking about when she picked up where she left off.

“I sometimes think about what it was like before too. When we still had the Bond between us.” she said as she looked up at him shyly, biting her bottom lip and smiling in embarrassment before sipping her caf gingerly.

“You do?” he asked roughly, unsure of where this was going.

She nodded in acknowledgement as she tilted her head. “I sometimes miss how easy things were back then, back on the island,” she all but whispered.

His jaw dropped in amazement. “You do?” he asked again, thinking he was starting to sound like a dimwitted primate.

She chuckled. “You sound surprised.”

He swallowed hard and frowned. “I am,” he responded dryly. “I never would have believed it if I hadn’t heard it with my own ears. You were always trying to keep me out, pushing me out, building walls, closing it off.”

Again she chuckled. “It used to be so easy. I’ll admit it scared me most of the time. But I always knew what you were thinking if I wanted to know. And if I couldn’t read your mind, at least I could feel what you were feeling. It was…” Her voice trailed off gently as she seemed lost in the search for an appropriate word.

“Useful?” he uttered.

She smiled at him and laughed. The sound was beautiful. It reminded him of that well they’d managed to blow up, the sound soft and tinkling. It was oddly satisfying to know he was able to make her laugh.

“No. I was going to say comforting,” she said with another soft burst of laughter.

“Comforting?” he asked in confusion.

“Yes. Comforting,” she replied sweetly. “I’ve been alone all my life. Thanks to our Bond, I wasn’t alone anymore, even when I didn’t want it. I guess I didn’t realize how much of a comfort it was not be lonely anymore. Even after…” Her voice trailed off and she looked at her lap for a moment.

“Even after what happened in the Throne Room, it was a comfort to know you were still there, even if I was blocking you. I was angry because of the path you had chosen, so disappointed about the way things had turned out, but I was still happy to know I hadn’t lost our connection fully.”

She was looking at him, the firelight granting a golden hue to her eyes and she was looking at him with the strangest expression on her face. It left him lost for words. He averted his gaze once more and kept silent. He took a sip of his caf and stared into the fire for a moment or two. He all but dropped his cup of caf when he suddenly felt her hand on his cheek.

“Does it still hurt?”

His gaze clashed with hers and he saw nothing but gentle concern there. She watched as he swallowed hard and pursed his lips in that endearing way of his that always made her smile.

“Not right now,” he said hoarsely with a small shake of his head.

He tried to dislodge her hand, but if anything, she cupped his cheek more fully. His entire cheek felt like it was on fire. Every nerve ending in his body responded because her hand was touching his cheek. His breathing quickened in embarrassment and he tried to look away but found himself unable to break her gaze. He felt himself drowning in it, losing himself all over again.

Her lips parted in surprise. It seemed her own breathing became a little shallow too. He swallowed again and was about to say something when she beat him to it.

“Do you feel that too?” she murmured softly.

He did. But would admitting it make a difference? “Rey…” he started, but once again she cut him off.

“Do you hear that?” she said as she looked away.

He stared in the same direction as she did, wondering what in the Galaxy she was talking about when he caught tail of it. A gentle whisper seemed to drift on the breeze, unintelligible words, but familiar nonetheless.

“Do you mean the whispers?” he asked softly.

“Ahuh,” she mumbled. “I haven’t heard them in days…” she muttered under her breath.

They seemed to grow louder and more insistent. Something about it told her it had something to do with the fact that they were touching, and for some reason that encouraged her.

She returned her gaze to his with a frown and studied him for a moment or two.

“Would you mind if I tried something?” she asked hesitantly, sure that he would deny her.

He pursed his lips again, hating that he did. He felt it was a telltale sign of his insecurity and hated that it was so obvious for everyone to see. But he responded to her nonetheless.

“Sure. Go ahead,” he said softly.

“Alright.” She sounded breathless. Anticipation coursed through her. “Give me your hand,” she whispered, her voice holding a husky note. The sound seemed connected directly to his groin, for he felt his lower abdomen twitch.

Hesitantly he lifted his hand. She held out her own, mirroring his.

She stared into his eyes and out of their own volition, their hands touched palm to palm.

The jolt that went through them was shocking. If touching his fingers before was powerful, this was even more so. Every nerve ending seemed to come to life, the air around them seemed to crackle with the intensity of it. They both drew in a sharp breath, the shock evident in their eyes. The whispers seemed to grow louder, the sound resembling a melody A flash of a vision shot through their brains, of the wellspring coming back to life.

Ben pulled his hand back with a start, unable to handle it any more. He was not a stranger to lust or desire, but this…

“What was that?” he exclaimed roughly.

Rey seemed equally startled. The whispers died down a little again. There was her proof.

“I think I know the answer,” she whispered. Her eyes met his and she leaned forward. “I know how we can restore the well!”

His eyebrows shot up as he seemed to catch up on her meaning. “Oh no!” he said as he got on his feet. “Rey, get it out of your head.”

“Ben!” she exclaimed as she too got to her feet. “This is the only way we can restore it!”

He shook his head vehemently. “You cannot be serious, Rey!” He realized he was raising his voice, but there was no real conviction behind it.

Rey just stared at him, studying him from beneath lowered lashes. Then she took a step closer, closing the distance between them. They were all but touching from toe to chest, her eyes never breaking contact with his. His chest was heaving fast, and she could sense his panic.

As if she felt the Force guiding her again, she lifted her hand and let it rest on his chest, over his heart. “Ben,” she whispered softly. “Don’t be afraid. I feel it too.”

She watched as his eyes widened, his pupils growing so large his eyes seemed as black as night. His lips parted and he let out short bursts of air, trying to regain some of his equilibrium.

His eyes became heavy-lidded when she let her hands slide up over his chest. As her thumb caressed the scar on his cheek, she swore she could feel his heart thud against her chest. She felt an inappropriate sense of entitlement. She had given him that scar. She had branded him.

_ Mine. _

Ben was confused. He was aroused. He was scared.

And he swore he could hear her whisper, “Mine”.

He felt his every defense and every reservation crumble as he saw the same sentiments reflected in her hazel eyes. And try as he might, he couldn’t fight it anymore.


	12. Orion meets Scorpio: The Passionate One.

“Rey!” he growled as he cupped the back of her neck and captured her lips in a searing kiss.

Golden fireworks exploded behind their closed eyes. The whispers around them grew louder, the melody swelling, but they were too engrossed in the sensations that washed over them.

He angled his head to fit his lips to hers more closely and her mouth opened to grant him access. He touched his tongue to hers and their Bond cracked open and rushed into them again as if a floodgate had been opened. His longing crashed into her, and she  _ knew _ exactly how long he had been longing to do this, could feel his desperation wash over her like a wave hitting the shore.

She sighed deeply in contentment and reached up to bury her hands in his hair. His arms wrapped around her waist, pulling her as close as physically possible.

_ “Ben…” _ she sighed through their Bond, her joy at being linked to him again communicated clear as day.

_ “Rey! At last…” _ he responded in kind.

When they came up for air, they stared into each other’s eyes deeply. She watched as he pursed his lips again and chuckled.

“I love it when you do that,” she murmured as her eyes filled with tears.

He stilled at her choice of words, trying extremely hard not to read to much into it.

“I hate it when I do that,” he countered.

“Why?” she asked on a laugh.

He laughed in response and replied, “It doesn’t matter.” He captured her lips again and once again they were lost in the feel of each other.

At a certain point, Rey got so weak in the knees she could barely remain standing. Ben noticed and somehow they managed to sink to the ground together without a trace of awkwardness. He covered her body with his own and they both sighed at the sensation of delicious sparks coursing through them wherever they touched.

He kissed her so deeply and with so much passion, it seemed as if he was trying to imprint her very soul on his own. She pulled him even closer and drew her legs up so he could shift his weight to lie between them. As soon as their cores came into contact, they broke the kiss on a low hissing exhale.

He pushed his forehead against hers in a way that was far more intimate than the way their bodies were pressing together. She felt him trembling in her arms and felt his insecurities course through her own veins. She could only bask in the glory of their restored Bond.

“Are you sure about this, Rey?” he asked, his voice small and hesitant, his face infinitely tender in the firelight.

She lifted his face so she could gaze into his eyes profoundly, her lips curving in an adoring smile. “This is our destiny, Ben Solo,” she whispered. “You told me you would find me and make me face it.”

He stilled as her thumb trailed his scar again. She swallowed and looked up at him with eyes soft with affection.

“Now, take me beyond the stars…”

He sensed not a moment’s hesitation coming from her. He nodded and she brushed at the lock of hair that fell over his forehead. Their lips met once more and then they touched in earnest. His hand grabbed the back of her neck and drew her closer as his other hand found her hip and squeezed. She grabbed his shoulder with one hand, her other grabbing hold of his buttocks and digging her nails in.

Bless their restored Bond, for they knew what the other wanted and were able to comply without uttering a single word. They undid their clothing slowly, peeling away layer after layer. Soon they were as naked as the day they were born. Ben took her shawl and spread it on the ground and gingerly shifted her onto it.

_ “You are so beautiful,” _ he whispered through their Bond, his eyes caressing every inch of her as he moved to settle himself back between her legs.

_ “So are you,” _ she whispered right back, her eyes all but devouring him.  _ “I can’t wait to count all the beauty marks on your skin, and to kiss every scar on your body.” _

He chuckled out loud at that remark. “You do realize there are too many to actually do that?”

Humor laced his voice and he seemed completely different when he smiled like that. So carefree, such a far cry from that monster she’d accused him of being. A feeling so pure and so honest slammed into her, bringing tears to her eyes. She would not name it, would not utter a single syllable. Not yet, not now, but she knew what it was. And as she stared up at him, she knew he felt the same. Because she felt it across their Bond.

“That doesn’t mean I won’t try,” she said with a wide grin, trying to insert a little humor into something that was becoming very serious very fast.

He stared at her and he nodded in understanding.

His lips found the curve of her neck and he rained kisses down that slender column, finding a very responsive spot just below her ear. It made her moan and squirm beneath him. She trailed her nails down his back, scraping them along his nerve endings and making him shudder in her arms with desire. The pleasure mixed in with the slightest tinge of pain and it made his arousal peak instantly.

She felt his erection press against her most private parts, his hips grinding into hers out of pure instinct. It drove her mad.

Their lips found each other again and they kissed as if their lives depended on it. As if they needed the oxygen the other had to continue to live. Their hands roamed wildly and freely.

When he grabbed her breast and squeezed, it made her arch off the ground so hard she broke their kiss. Her gasp was loud in the night, even louder than the incessant melody the whispers were producing. She cried out his name when he flicked her nipple with his thumb, and then squeezed it gently between his thumb and forefinger.

She seemed to like it very much, judging by her reaction, so he did it again, to both breasts this time. He was rewarded with a low guttural moan that made his blood pump hotly through his veins. She arched up again and buried her hands in his hair. He kissed her lips again, and she sucked his bottom lip.

She suddenly shifted her weight, flipping him to his back in the process. She straddled his hips and pressed soft, tender kisses to the scar on his cheek.

She started right at the very top, above his eyebrow and worked her way down his cheek, along his neck and ended right on his chest. She couldn’t resist dragging her tongue over his nipple, closing her lips around it and sucking it gently.

“Whoa, Rey! For Maker’s sake, slow down!” he cried out hoarsely as he grabbed her ass and squeezed hard. It had the effect he wanted, because she cried out as well and it caused her to release her sucking grip on his nipple.

“Haven’t we fought this long enough?” she asked with a frown, confused at his words.

He could feel her desire course through her, shaking her to her very core. He caressed her bottom slowly, drawing wide circles and squeezing it once more.

“Yes, we have.” A sly smile graced his lips as he looked up at her from beneath his lowered lashes. “And this time, Luke won’t be around to stop us.”

It made her giggle, despite the inappropriate mentioning of his uncle and her mMaster. Her giggle died on her lips when she felt his fingers slide closer to her core. Her breathing became labored as he gently rubbed them up and down her folds.

“Maker, you’re so wet…” he murmured softly, his voice filled with awe.

“Is that good or bad?” she asked in between pants.

He smiled almost lovingly. He licked his lips before he spoke again, his breathing as hard as hers. “You tell me…” His voice trailed off as he slowly pushed his finger in between her folds.

Her eyes widened, her mouth parted, and a high pitched little surprised sound escaped her lips. She frowned at the exquisite pleasure before her eyes rolled back and she placed her hands on his shoulders for support.

He watched her expressions, still confounded and in complete and utter awe that this woman, this powerful and beautiful creature, trusted him enough to let him touch her like this. He started a slow rhythm that soon had her rocking her hips against his hand.

He had spent most of his adult life chasing after power. He had become the Supreme Leader of the galaxy and nothing had even come close to feeling as powerful as he was feeling right now. To have this woman go wild with abandon in his arms because of his administrations was the most glorious and powerful thing he had ever done.

She rocked back against him, keeping his pace easily. She was becoming increasingly wet and it was driving him wild.

“Ben…” she whimpered as he felt her muscles tighten around his finger. He inserted another finger and angled them just so and it drove her wild. She screamed out his name in delight, and it evolved into a series of low moans as he lifted his head and drew her nipple in his mouth. As he sucked and laved and swirled his tongue around that sensitive little bud, he felt her excitement rise to the point of breaking through their Bond.

He angled his thumb so it rubbed against her clit every time she rocked against his hand. She opened her eyes and stared at him wide-eyed and wild.

Through their Bond, her frantically whispered pleas barely registered as he watched her expressions shift from surprise to delight to a look of adoration. He felt her muscles tighten around his fingers, and another series of short moans and cries rose above the mounting crescendo of the whispers around them.

Soon she could take no more.

As she cried out his name, he felt her inner muscles clamp down on his fingers with incredible force. She stiffened in exquisite torture and froze completely for a few long seconds before she tumbled forward on his chest. She kissed his lips languidly and stayed that way until she had caught her breath somewhat.

She let out a low chuckle as she murmured lovingly against his neck. “That was amazing.”

It was his turn to chuckle. “That was just the start, sweetheart.”

He wrapped his arms around her and turned them around again so that he was once again lying on top of her. She looked up at him and bit her bottom lip as she tucked another errant lock of hair behind his ear.

“Promise?” she whispered.

The words got stuck in his throat, so he whispered them back through their Bond.  _ “I promise.” _

He lowered himself to catch her lips in a gentle kiss again. He let his lips explore her neck, ears, and shoulders. He revisited her breasts again, worshipping them with his hands, lips, and tongue. He kissed her stomach and her thighs until she was quivering beneath him and was begging him through their Bond.

_ “Ben, please! I can’t take this anymore… Please!” _

He worked his way towards her lips again and replied.  _ “Are you sure?” _

She caressed his cheek and smiled into his eyes. “I have never been this sure of anything in my entire life.”

He swallowed hard and did that lip pursing thing she adored so much. His cock twitched against her stomach and it determined her next action. She grabbed him gently and watched as he gritted his teeth and his eyes rolled back in ecstasy as she slowly moved her hand up and down.

_ “Kriff, Rey!” _ he shouted out through their Bond.

He shuddered above her, tremors wrecking through him as he supported himself on his palms next to her shoulders. When he couldn’t stand anymore, he grabbed her wrist and ground out through his teeth.

“Rey, enough.” His voice was rough and hoarse and his eyes showed a desperate gleam. He lifted her hand to his lips and kissed her palm tenderly. He then placed it on the back of his neck.

She trembled as he positioned himself at her entrance, once more reveling in the fact that she was dripping wet.

_ “Are you sure?” _ he asked one more time.

She couldn’t utter a single word for the life of her so she simply nodded. He angled his hips and gently pushed forward. Both Rey and Ben were completely amazed by the way their bodies stretched and pushed and seemed to be made to fit together this way.

The moment their bodies connected, they felt as if something clicked. Like a puzzle that had finally been completed. Like they had both finally found that part of themselves they had been searching all their lives. Their eyes met and they  _ knew. _

Out of their own volition, their bodies started a rhythm as they joined in a dance that lovers had been doing since the beginning of time. The sound of the whispers around them grew louder and louder as they got lost in that glorious friction of entangled bodies. Their cries and moans joined in and together they blended into a marvelous symphony, reaching a crescendo simultaneously with Rey and Ben.

As they reached their orgasms, the earth beneath them shuddered as wildly as their heartbeats. Bright white light exploded all around them as they clung to each other, and brightly colored prisms shone around them like millions of diamonds. They felt as if they were indeed floating beyond the stars.

When they slowly drifted back down from that splendid pinnacle, when their hearts returned to their chests and their breathing returned to normal, they felt something strange take hold of them.

As they stared into each other’s eyes, an otherworldly knowledge seemed to be imparted with them. The whispers in the air were suddenly no longer unintelligible. Instead, they could actually understand what they were saying.

 

_ “There is emotion, yet peace _

_ There is serenity, yet passion _

_ There is chaos, yet harmony _

_ There is no life without death. _

_ This is the only truth, _

_ this is the only Force. _

_ You have been blind too long, _

_ and now you are aware. _

_ Go back and teach what you have learned _

_ Together, you are balanced.” _

 

“You always bring out my Light,” Ben whispered softly with tears in his eyes.

“And you always bring out my Dark,” Rey whispered in kind as a tear slipped down her temple.

Together, they breathed one word before their lips met again in the gentlest of kisses.

“Balance.”

They lay there naked together, on the ground in front of the fire, wrapped tightly in a sweet embrace, knowing they never would part again. They had finally realized they were the same, a part of the same whole, their souls linked for a reason. They were equals in everything, balancing each other perfectly.

As the fire started to die out, they got up and gathered their discarded clothes. Still wrapped in each other’s arms, they walked over to the Falcon. They crawled in the big double bed and warmed by their nearness they gently slipped into a deep sleep. ****


	13. Orion meets Libra: The Balanced one.

They awoke the next morning and remained in bed for a good long while, simply enjoying the nearness and their newfound connection. It was deeper and more profound than ever before.

Their knowledge of the Force itself also seemed to have altered. The revelations they experienced were nothing if not life-changing. Rey and Ben decided that their current way of living was all wrong. Both of them realized that it had to change.

After discussing it in the little cocoon of their bedroom on the Falcon, they decided they would start by turning the First Order around and offering peace to the Resistance after a little while. There would be no need for them once the threat of the First Order was dismantled.

That meant they would have to be apart for a little while as both of them needed to make the necessary preparations, but it would also mean they would have the rest of their lives together.

Rey told him she was worried about Hux and some of the other officers staging a coup, but Ben assured her it would not be an issue. He still had his Knights of Ren, and they were loyal to him only.

Besides, he still had her and their Force Bond.

After thoroughly discussing their plans, they made love again. It was just as exciting and intense as before. They got dressed and decided to go look for their lightsabers again in the cave.

As they walked over to the cave hand in hand, they did not speak. They didn’t have to. Every thought, every emotion, every sensation was conveyed without a word over their Bond.

As they entered, they immediately noticed a new bright golden glow coming from deep within the cave. As they neared the opening where the well had been before, they were both stunned to their core.

It was no longer a small flow of gold, but a true and bubbling waterfall, impressive in size and awe-inspiring in it’s beauty. The quantity of the golden particles seemed to have at least tripled in number.

The tinkling sound had also returned, stronger than before. The unintelligible words were no longer that; instead it kept chanting what they both now referred to as the Grey code.

Rey noticed Ben’s lightsaber lying in a corner, half buried underneath some rubble. Ben walked to the other end of the cave. Rey’s lightsaber was in plain view. He picked it up and turned back towards her. They met in the center of the room, in front of the source.

“Here’s to being my Light,” he said with a wink as he handed her lightsaber back.

She grinned and held out his own lightsaber. “And here’s to being my Dark.” As he reached out, Rey snatched it back just in time.

“Every now and then, that is,” she said saucily.

Ben grinned at her cheekiness. “Whenever you want me to,” he replied and kissed her as she handed it over at last, making the wellspring sparkle and tinkle harder, as if the Force itself approved of the exchange.

“Do you think they still work?” she asked hesitantly.

“Only one way to find out…” Ben said on a sigh.

They thumbed their lightsabers simultaneously and gasped at what happened. They had been forever altered.

Instead of Ben’s red and Rey’s blue beam, the sabers now shone as two perfectly balanced, bright golden plasma beams.

Once more they looked at this magnificent source of power, this very essence of the Force before them. Again it sounded, clear as day, as if wanting to imprint it on them forever.

_ “There is emotion, yet peace _

_ There is serenity, yet passion _

_ There is chaos, yet harmony _

_ There is no life without death. _

_ This is the only truth, _

_ this is the only Force. _

_ You have been blind too long, _

_ and now you are aware. _

_ Go back and teach what you have learned _

_ Together, you are balanced.” _

 

They looked at each other and finally understood. They exited the cave together, hands locked tightly.

Rey and Ben shared a final kiss before they both left on their separate ships, flying together for as long as they could, parting ways at the very last moment.

 

****


	14. Light…

A year had passed since Rey and Ben had returned from Orion’s Belt.

After the initial hubbub had died down and all the lectures had been over and dealt with, they had ducked their heads and gone to work as they had planned on Balance.

Ben had kept to his part of the deal, turning the First Order around with the help of the Knights of Ren. A lot of the leadership were infinitely confused. Some of them had indeed tried to cause a mutiny, among them Hux of course. They had been detained and exiled to some outer rim planet where they could do no harm.

Rey had explained everything time and time again and after seeing the changes Ben had implemented, the Resistance had finally come to trust the new First Order enough to start disbanding their organization. Slowly but surely, people were starting to get used to the idea that the New First Order was a good thing.

Rey and Ben had taken on the extra task of starting a new academy for Force Sensitives. Applying their newfound knowledge, they made sure to stress the need for balance within the Force, and that too much of one side would throw off that precious balance. That balance was the key to understanding the true nature of the Force and its importance was emphasized daily.

No longer were children forced to leave their families behind, no longer were they obligated to choose a side. They were simply taught both sides of the spectrum and that both had their purpose in life.

To mark their one year anniversary after their epiphany on Balance, Ben finally asked Rey again to join him. To rule the Galaxy with him, by his side and as his equal, to be his Light and his purpose. To be his everything, as she always had been and always would be, no matter what.

And this time, since he had chosen his words with more tact and thoughtfulness, Rey accepted his outstretched hand.

And they ruled the Galaxy, bringing forth a new era of peace and order.

An era of Balance.

 

**_The end_ **

 

**Author's Note:**

> Dear reader, 
> 
> I would love to know what you think of this story.  
> As an author, you always end up putting a little bit of your soul into your stories, and this was no exception.  
> And when you write fanfiction, the likes, kudos and comments are the only payment you'll receive.  
> So if you liked this story - or any other story in this collection for that matter - please show it some love by leaving a comment or a kudo.  
> It means the world to a writer, and our gratitude will never be greater. 
> 
> Lots of love  
> B


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